Till' I Collapse
by TellNoOne
Summary: A story of friendship, a tale of love, a way of finding the magic in reality; Jesse Aarons was a loner, and Leslie Burke was a girl with one too many dreams; How will the chance meeting of these two very different children affect their worlds? Jess/Leslie
1. Chapter 1

_Disclaimer: I do not own any of the characters. That all belongs to the wonderful Katherine Paterson, and Disney. I just took their movie and twisted the plot. _

_Be warned that I have NEVER read the novel; only seen the movie so I'm sorry if things seem off. I'm doing the best that I can, and feedback would be wonderful. What I did was this took this scene where Jesse and Leslie first talk and make it into a completely different story. I hope you like what you see here today, and I'll be glad to hear your opinions on my writing so far._

_-TellNoOne_

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**Till' I Collapse**

_**Part One: Discovering Leslie Burke**_

_**Chapter One**_

(Please read and review)

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_**August 4, 2007 (Monday)**_

_**1300 Cora Perry Lane**_

_**3:02PM**_

Mellow sunshine and intense waves of quickly cooling air slapped an eleven year old boy in the face as he stepped off the ripe yellow transportation vehicle behind him. Inwardly, he hated the thing; it reminded him far too much of a soup can with all his least favorite vegetables in it.

Bus rides were always long and tedious when one had no companion to talk with, but today's ride had been even worse due to the fact of the taunting of other students. Each comment made him fume.

'_He's the second fastest kid in the sixth grade, because he lost to a girl'_ and other such phrases. Most of which tore at his already hurt pride and made him want to wad himself tightly into a corded ball of shame and humiliation. As if seeing his sister's face fall when he'd told her he'd lost wasn't bad enough; he now had to listen to everyone on the bus—_older and younger_—mock him about losing to a _girl_.

No, he thought abrasively, of course it didn't matter that there were _twelve other_ boys who got smoked by the new girl. The only thing that seemed to stick in their minds was the sight of him—at first—leading the pack, and then being suddenly overtaken by a _girl_ in the homestretch.

Added to that, he noticed half-way through the incredibly irritating ride home, that the winner of the race sat two seats behind him. His wounded pride took another kick every time he glanced back and saw her blonde hair. He was angry and the troll that was Janice Avery wasn't helping matters as she sneered and mocked him for losing the foot race to a _bean pole_.

So by the time he got off the bus his humiliation and rage had reached an entirely new level. Stomping off, he heard the bus's doors close and was relieved, but his relief was short-lived as the bus braked again and the doors swung open to reveal something that caused his heart to freeze in his chest, before it started pounding again with a vengeance. His wounded pride swelled with indignation as he watched _her_ walk down the steps, her bags in tow.

"_Are you following me?"_ Jesse Aarons asked incredulously, his voice tinged with suspicion as he watched the new girl step off the bus from behind him. The girl raised a blonde eyebrow; responding to his question with an equally disturbed look.

"Uh, no," she said slowly as though Jesse had some mental processing issues. "I live over there," she finished, gesturing towards a large three-story house that had been uninhabited since Jess could remember. That house was three times the size of his own, and Jesse wanted to cringe at how stupid he must've sounded asking her that.

It's not as though he could help it though, he was still peeved that he had been so close to winning that race, and victory had been taken from him—by _a girl_ no less.

Embarrassed and angrier than he'd ever been before, Jesse didn't say anything in response; he turned around not daring to look back at her. He didn't want things to be awkward, and he knew that if he opened his mouth right then something scathing and most likely offensive would slip out. Then he would have to deal with the guilt of hurting a girl's feelings, because his pride was howling away like a wounded puppy, and then his pride would be battered _again_ because he'd have to _apologize_ for acting like a pinhead.

Jesse stared resolutely forward, his mouth shut, determined to maintain his stony silence. This girl had caused him one loss today, and that was quite enough. The quiet was uncomfortable for the three of them for all of two seconds when something New Girl had said finally clicked in Jesse's little sister, May Belle's mind.

"We're neighbors!" she exclaimed, an excited look on her face that highlighted her childish features, "You got any little sisters?"

New girl only shook her head, the blonde locks flailing wildly as May Belle slowed down to walk beside her. "No, just me," New girl replied lightly, and May Belle slumped slightly in disappointment.

"Oh," his sister muttered softly.

Jesse felt bad for her of course because there were no younger kids for her to play with in the direct vicinity, and Jess knew he wasn't much help. He was a loner both at home, and in school. He looked away from his momentarily dejected sister in shame. _What a brother he was._

"You got any barbies?" she asked happily, her sadness once again forgotten.

New girl nodded, "Yeah, I think I have a few. Do you have any?"

"Yeah; just one and a half," May Belle replied with a smile.

"A half?" New girl's bemusement was obvious—at least to Jess—and May Belle nodded excitedly.

"One got cut in half, playing super extreme Barbie. You flush them down the toilet, or drop them from the upstairs window. Stuff like that; its fun." Jesse's sister babbled exuberantly, and he saw new girl grin a little.

"It certainly sounds interesting," New girl agreed, and May Belle opened her mouth to say something, but was interrupted by a tall man wearing glasses and a messy haircut ambling down the drive; keys in hand.

"Hi dad," New girl greeted brightly as she went to her father's side and the man smiled down at her, "Hey Hun; I was about to go to the store and pick up some supplies. Did you want to come with?"

New girl nodded, and said to May Belle and Jesse, "See ya."

"Bye," May Belle waved excitedly, seemingly glad to have found a friend in new girl.

The seven-year old took off down the road without her brother, and Jesse wondered why she was in such a hurry to get home, but his attention was caught when Mr. New girl's father smiled slightly as he and his daughter walked back down the drive in the direction they had just come from.

Jess glanced over his shoulder as new girl dropped her backpack on the ground and shrugged out of her jacket. He was surprised when he saw that new girl's father only had house keys, and not car keys like he had first thought.

"You're walking?" he blurted out in astonishment, and they both looked at him surprised.

New girl's father laughed, "You bet ya. We need the exercise and the day's gorgeous."

"But sir," Jesse protested hesitantly, "the store has to be a good five miles from here. Isn't that a bit far for you to walk, then walk back carrying groceries?"

New girl had a weird look on her face, and Jess felt his stomach churn with uncertainty.

He wondered why he was acting so concerned as new girl's father replied, "We won't be getting much, but I can see your point. Would you like to accompany us? Maybe we could use some help later on."

Jesse's eyes widened slightly. "Erm, no sir, I have chores and homework to do, but thanks for the offer."

"Well, that's quite alright son. I'm sure me and my offspring can figure things out. If push comes to shove, I'll give my wife a call and tell her to come pick us up."

Jesse nodded in consternation, and he watched as the two turned and began walking away. He was surprised when a minute later, new girl looked back at him over her shoulder, and waved.

"See ya later, Jess," she called out, and he was surprised that she remembered his name when he didn't even know hers. He felt guilty now for calling her new girl instead of learning her actual name. He'd find out tomorrow, but for now Jess knew he looked like a _Class A jerk_ by not saying anything back, so he lifted his hand and waved back weakly.

"Yeah, see ya," he called out, and he saw her smile. That smile made him nervous, something he hadn't been expecting, and he watched as she turned back around and ran to catch up with her father.

The sun shining down on the pair made them look otherworldly in a very strange way, and Jesse wondered exactly why they—particularly new girl—made him curious.

"Jess, come on!" He turned and saw his mother standing near the door of their house, waving towards him. Jess waved back to her, making sure she knew he had acknowledged her presence before glancing back down the lane. New girl and her father were nowhere in sight, and Jess figured that her speed hadn't just been natural, but inherited as well.

He turned and ran home, where his mom was engaged in another argument with his older sister, Brenda. "When I tell you to watch the baby Brenda, that's what I mean," she was saying sternly as Jess walked inside, abandoning his "new" sneakers at the door.

"It's Ellie's turn," the curly-haired fifteen-year old returned scathingly, and Ellie shouted from the den, "_I'm doing Algebra_!"

Jesse couldn't contain his snort. Ellie never did Algebra; that usually translated into watching some stupid television show.

Brenda gave him a glare. "What are you laughing at dickwad?" she snarled angrily as she crossed her arms. His mother's head snapped towards her daughter, and their fighting returned with a new intensity.

"_You don't talk like that in my house, young lady!"_ His mom practically screeched at her fifteen-year old daughter.

"_Well, he is one! I'm pretty sure he doesn't have a—" _

"_Brenda May Aarons, you better not finish that sentence,"_ she yelled, cutting across the girl's statement. Jesse ignored them and walked towards the stairs, managing to steal a handful of popcorn from his seventeen year old sister Ellie.

Ellie growled—causing Jesse to sometimes wonder if the older females in his family were related to felines in any way—and he skillfully dodged her kick that was aimed for his head.

As he walked upstairs, Jesse painfully admitted that this house was way too overrun with women, and they were all in some way incredibly _annoying_.

Entering his bedroom, Jesse plopped down on his bed, ignoring the sounds of May Belle doing artwork and chatting with her Barbie. Still munching on popcorn, Jesse flipped open his notebook and his eyes narrowed when he saw a finger-painting on one of the pages.

"May Belle," he hissed loudly, and ripped past the curtain that separated their "rooms". "_I thought I told you to stay out of my stuff!_"

"I didn't do anything," May Belle shrieked, scuttling back towards her bed.

"Don't lie to me," Jesse shot back, his patience for the day completely shot.

May Belle shook her head violently, "You can't prove it!"

Just as Jesse was about to take a step forward, his father opened the door and May Belle launched herself at him, "DADDY!"

"Hey pumpkin; is your brother picking on you?" he asked, kissing the small girl on her forehead. Jesse frowned, his hands fisted in anger, and he felt his face fall into his normal indifferent mask.

"She was in my stuff," he muttered quietly.

"What stuff?" Jesse's father asked instantly, setting May Belle back on the floor.

The girl bit her lip anxiously, and Jess handed over the notebook. It was silent for a moment, and Jess watched as his father looked at the notebook, at May Belle, and then at him, before he asked, "How'd that race go?"

"He lost," May Belle said immediately, speaking before Jess could say anything, "There was this new girl who beat _all_ the boys, _even Jess_."

Jesse felt his humiliation return, and he looked at the ground, feeling his father's heavy gaze fall on him. He felt like crying, and he wanted his father—_for once_—to hug him or simply give him some caring advice. Jess was tired of observing as his sisters were showered with affection, but he was left out in the cold.

It had been a bad day, and Jesse really hoped that this would be the moment that could turn things around. He was severely disappointed—_almost painfully so_—when his father quietly handed him back his notebook. Jesse felt almost betrayed by his father, and was even more upset that the one place he could use as an escape had been invaded by _his own sister_.

He mutinously wondered if there was a sign stuck on his back that said he wasn't worth caring for. It was either that or he really didn't deserve to be hugged or have his privacy respected. Right then, Jesse felt like swearing off girls for life. They were nothing but _pests_ who got all the attention and ruined good days by talking way _too_ much or doing something they weren't supposed to be doing. And what was _worse _was that they _got away with it_.

Inwardly he sighed, and realized that not all girls were like his sisters, and May Belle wasn't all that bad really. She just didn't know when to keep her mouth shut, and she frequently crossed boundaries that had been clearly drawn. If it weren't for those things, he'd never have a problem with the seven-year old.

"Remember to get your chores done, Jesse," his father stated, before walking towards the door, May Belle in tow.

"Yes Dad," Jesse whispered to thin air as the door clicked closed. His hand tightened around his notebook as he turned away from the door, and for the first time, Jesse _didn't_ know which of those possibilities was _true_.

--

_**August 4, 2007(Monday) **_

_**1301 Cora Perry Lane **_

_**The Aarons' Residence**_

_**7:03PM**_

Not saying anything, Jesse walked into the kitchen and started finishing off his last chore. He had been working for over an hour; checking plants for newly grown vegetables, pulling weeds out in the backyard, and feeding the animals. It always seemed to Jesse that any chores Ellie and Brenda didn't do, he had to do them before his dad found out, or he was yelled at for being lazy.

It wasn't an unusual occurrence for him to have to gather the chicken eggs from the coop, or remember to turn on the sprinkler system for the gardens out back. He even ended up pulling full grown potatoes, and corn; things his sisters were supposed to be responsible for. Jesse sighed quietly as he whipped a film of sweat from his forehead and gathered the trash from the house.

Brenda and Ellie were in an argument over the television remote again, and his mother was busy fussing over the baby—Joyce Ann—as dinner cooked. He spared them a second's glance before heading towards the door, but his mom's distracted voice stopped him, "Jesse, could you check the mower for gas? We're gonna need you to cut the grass tomorrow afternoon while I take Joyce Ann to the doctor and Brenda and Ellie need to stay after school for their audition at school."

Jesse stared at the door, and nodded lightly, "Sure mom." He walked out of the room, practically able to _feel_ his older sister's smug expressions.

Jess knew for a fact that Brenda and Ellie weren't auditioning for anything. He'd heard them talking about it awhile ago. The only thing they were gonna do was sneak away with their friends, and not come back until dinner. He wasn't stupid nor was he oblivious, but Jess figured that it wasn't any of his business, and it wasn't like his parents would believe him anyway.

He quickly checked the gas tank on the lawn mower, and frowned at seeing it nearly empty. Jesse felt like sighing; this meant he had to talk to his father—something he really wasn't looking forward to doing.

Jess walked to the trash bin and overturned the bucket, hearing his father and May Belle talking. Setting down the pail, he silently peeked inside the greenhouse as their conversation finally reached his ears.

"These are gonna be May Belle's magical flowers," His father said, and May Belle smiled brightly, turning her head to kiss her father's cheek.

"Are they really gonna be _magic_, daddy?" she asked innocently, using the eyedropper to put a specific amount of plant food on each one.

"You can count on it princess," Jess's father replied lovingly, and May Belle giggled.

Jess felt his stomach drop to his knees, and he backed away, not saying a word. He didn't want to admit it, but he was jealous. His father had never done anything like that when he was May Belle's age, and Jess wondered why. He decided to talk to his father about the lawn mower later.

As he walked away from the greenhouse, Jess heard the sound of someone laughing, and he looked down the dirt lane. Spotting new girl and her father walking; both laden with bags and huge smiles on their faces, Jess felt even _lower_ than _low_.

_Why couldn't he have that same good relationship with his father?_

_--_

_Please READ and REVIEW!_


	2. Chapter 2

_Disclaimer: On First Chapter. _

* * *

**Till' I Collapse**

_**Part One: Discovering Leslie Burke**_

_**Chapter Two**_

(Please read and review)

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_**August 5, 2007(Tuesday)**_

_**Lark Creek Elementary School**_

_**Music Class**_

_**10:17AM**_

The next day at school, Jesse stared hard at his music teacher, Ms. Edmunds as the instruments were passed out. She was pretty; exceedingly so with the wavy dark hair and bright blue eyes. He really didn't understand why he was so entranced with her himself, but he could never quite manage to talk whenever she was around.

He was distracted from his musings when new girl shook her tambourine in his face, and he glanced at her as she bent over to whisper in his ear, "Take a picture; it lasts longer."

Affronted, Jesse blinked, and saw the girl grin at him. He blinked in astonishment as she walked away, and he peered over at Ms. Edmunds, his face slightly red, before turning to look at new girl again. She shook her tambourine again and waved at him. This time Jesse couldn't help but notice that while new girl was the complete opposite of Ms. Edmunds, she too was pretty in a very strange way.

"So is everyone glad that summer's over?" The music teacher asked loudly, a cheery smile on her face as all of Jesse's classmates groaned in dismay. "Well, then make some noise!"

He looked back at Ms. Edmunds as she began singing, and soon he forgot all about new girl and her comment.

--

_**August 5, 2007(Tuesday)**_

_**Lark Creek Elementary School**_

_**School Bus**_

_**2:41PM**_

For some reason, the bus ride home was different than normal. It might have had something to do with the fact that he was seated directly behind new girl, and he realized that he still didn't know who she was.

Thinking back to music class, Jess decided against talking to her and he pulled out his notebook, before sketching. He only noticed something was different a few moments later, when a shadow made his picture look darker.

Glancing upwards, Jess reflexively shut his notebook and stared at new girl as her smile faded away. She bit her lip, and brushed her blonde hair behind her ears, before holding out a pack of juicy fruit gum.

Jesse stared at it for a second and then glanced back at new girl, before taking a piece. New girl smiled brightly, and Jess gave her a hesitant one back as she turned back around, and sat down.

He held onto the stick of gum for a moment, and began to feel guilty all over again. It seemed that new girl had done nothing, but treat him kindly since yesterday, and here he was acting like a petulant child over _losing a race_.

Jesse knew that his pride had been hurt more than anything, and he hated the fact that he didn't have the courage to apologize for being a jerk to her after she'd won.

Right then, Jesse felt he was no better than Scott Hoager.

--

_**August 5, 2007(Tuesday) **_

_**1301 Cora Perry Lane**_

_**The Aarons' Residence**_

_**6:12PM**_

Sitting on the couch watching his sister's fight over the television again, Jesse listened to the serious conversation going on behind him. "We can't afford to go on like this, Jack," his mom told his dad urgently, a weary look on her features.

"I know that Mary, but what am I supposed to do?" he asked—Jess thought he sounded irritated—and his mom ran her fingers through her auburn curls.

"Maybe we can talk Ellie and Brenda into getting a job somewhere. Jesse and May Belle are too young to work."

"Now, Mary that's not true. Jesse can cut grass and help do some odd chores for the people down the street, and Ellie needs to focus on her grades. She's barely passing as is." Jesse stared incredulously at his father.

_So he was willing to make him work, but not his precious daughters? _

Jess's father glanced over at him, and Jesse looked away from his unreadable gaze. He didn't want his father to see the fury in his expression, but Jess could feel it there, churning away violently and suddenly he had to get out.

Jesse stood up abruptly, and was about to walk from the room when his dad called him back. "Jesse we're gonna need you to pick up on some more chores around the house. I'm going to be putting in for some more hours at the store, and I'll need your help to get some more funds. After school can you offer your help to some of the older couples down the street? Maybe use your artistic ability for something useful and draw yourself some fliers?"

Jesse felt insulted. "My art isn't there for me to sell myself when there are two perfectly capable teenagers—_almost adults_—in the house. Why don't _they_ get a job?" he hissed, lashing out at his dad for the first time ever.

The sudden quiet in the house did nothing to help the immediate unleashing of anger from Jesse's father. "I gave you instructions, and you are going to follow them, whether you like it or not, Jesse Aarons."

"Why do I have to do everything? Why not make Ellie stop watching television all afternoon and actually do her work then maybe she wouldn't be failing?! Why don't you make Brenda stop complaining about all the stuff she has to do, and make her actually do it? Because, I'm tired and I have enough to do without their crap as well."

The tension in the room was beyond thick, and Jesse knew what was coming before it even happened. A firm cuff on the side of his head had Jesse wincing, and he looked away from his father.

"I don't want to hear another word, Jess," he told him seriously, "Now go do your homework, before I decide to not let you go without a sore behind."

Jess's indifferent mask fell over his features and he turned walking upstairs, and into his room. That night, Jess finished his homework, and sat silently, staring out of his bedroom window.

He didn't sleep at all.

--

_**August 6, 2007(Wednesday)**_

_**Lark Creek Elementary School**_

_**English Class**_

_**1:10PM**_

Jesse was in a daze for the first half of his English class, so he wasn't aware of what was going on until Scott Hoager's snort sounded derisively from behind him.

"Self-contained underwater breathing apparatus by Leslie Burke," the teacher said proudly, and Jess looked up suddenly interested. He had never heard that name before.

"Leslie, why don't you come up and read it for us?"

There were murmurs throughout the classroom and Jesse briefly heard Madison Lincoln huff indignantly. Attention caught by the impressed tone of Mrs. Myers voice, Jesse observed as the new girl stood from her chair as the teacher smiled benignly at the head of the room. He noticed that the blonde didn't seem to notice—or if she did she obviously didn't care—about the thirty or so pairs of eyes that were staring at the back of her head as she made her way to where Mrs. Myers was standing.

So Leslie was her name, huh? At least now he wouldn't look like an idiot if he worked up the courage to apologize for his rudeness.

Leslie stepped up to the front of the classroom, and nonchalantly took the outstretched paper from Mrs. Myers' hand. She turned to the class and Jess could've sworn that he saw her tense briefly as her eyes roamed across the room.

She lightly cleared her throat, before speaking, "I'm moving gently forward over the wild and beautiful unexplored world below me…" Jesse stilled his drawing hand as he listened to her speak, "I'm floating in silence and breaking it up with the sound of my breath."

Jesse felt a chill sweep over his spine as Leslie's eyes glanced up from the paper. His brow furrowed and he studied her—wondering how she was able to read her essay without looking at the paper.

"Above me there's nothing but shimmery light; the place where I've come from, and will go back to when I'm done here. I am diving; I'm a scuba diver," Leslie smiled indulgently, and Jesse blinked as his surroundings shifted. He stared at the girl as her green eyes sparkled, but she never stopped talking, "I'm going deeper past the wrinkled rocks and dark seaweed toward a deep blueness where schools of silver fish wait."

Jesse's eyes widened as he felt the air around him ripple and burst, before the sounds of a swishing tail reached his ears. Disbelieving, Jesse watched as a plethora of metallic silver fish swam around his head. It felt so _real_. He could literally feel every swish and flick of the fish's body as they scuttled around his head, making light waves lap against his face.

"As I swim through the water, bubbles burst from me—wobbling like little jellyfish as they rise," Jesse's breath caught as mysterious bottle green eyes landed on his face, and they stared at each other. He almost shivered as he watched her breath lightly, and air bubbles shot into the air.

Jesse was taken aback by the sight. It was almost as if he was actually there. In the ocean; diving with the fish and touching the gritty sand at the sea floor. If he wasn't mistaken; this experience felt almost _magical. _

He had never felt anything like this before, and in all honesty, he didn't know how to react to such a deep and meaningful adventure taking place in the reading span of a one-page essay. Jesse practically marveled at it, but he pushed his wonderment down. _What was he supposed to do?_

That question ripped him from the magical world around him, and it brought him crashing back down into reality with a growing dread.

"I check my air. I don't have enough time to see everything, but that is what makes it so special," Leslie finished quietly, never taking her eyes from Jesse's.

When she finished, Mrs. Myers thanked her kindly, and said, "Tomorrow night at seven there is a special on an undersea explorer, and I'd like you all to watch it, and then write a one page essay on what you learned."

Sitting back in her seat, Jesse noticed new girl—_ahem_, Leslie—raise her hand. "What if you can't watch this program?"

Mrs. Myers looked dismayed, "I'm sure if you inform your parents…"

"But what if you don't have a television?" Leslie asked sincerely, and the entire class—excluding Jesse—burst out laughing. Jesse cringed slightly, and looked over at her in amazement as she continued, "My dad says that the television kills your brain cells."

Scott Hoager just had to throw his two cents in, "Your dad doesn't know anything. We watch television like _everyday_."

Leslie rolled her eyes and mumbled, "I rest my case." Jesse couldn't keep the slight smirk off his face at that comment.

"Well Leslie, you don't have to write this essay. You may write it on something else," Mrs. Myers said kindly, and Scott just had to speak again.

"Yeah, like _how to live in a cave_." The class—again not Jesse or Leslie—laughed and Leslie shrugged her shoulders in a classic '_whatever_' move as Mrs. Myers scolded Scott.

Jesse glanced back at Leslie, and briefly found himself studying her in slight wonderment. He shook it off as Leslie glanced up at him, before turning his attention back towards his now lecturing English teacher; Jesse started taking notes knowing he'd probably need them sometime this week.

--

_**August 6, 2007(Wednesday)**_

_**Lark Creek Elementary **_

_**School Bus**_

_**2:43PM**_

"Jess! _Jess!_ _The big kids will kill her!"_ May Belle's anxious cry made Jesse look up in shock; he instantly saw Janice Avery—a monstrous looking girl—stalking onto the bus, and then he glanced back and saw Leslie sitting in Janice's seat.

"Are you insane?!" Jesse cried to a surprised Leslie, "The back seat is for eighth graders."

Jesse moved without thinking. He grabbed Leslie's bag, and took her hand, dragging her up and over the seats just before Janice passed him. "That's right bean pole," Janice laughed cruelly, before plopping down in her seat.

Leslie slid down beside him and breathed a sigh of relief. The rest of the bus ride was silent.

--

_**August 6, 2007(Wednesday)**_

_**1300 Cora Perry Lane**_

_**3:01PM**_

Getting off the bus, Jesse didn't know whether to be relieved or annoyed, but he was most certainly shocked when Leslie mockingly waved at Janice Avery.

"Do you have a death wish?" he asked in disbelief, "'Cause you're really asking for it."

He started walking away from her, and he heard Leslie begin to follow him. "It seems to me that she gives it out whether you ask for it or not. I might as well have some fun."

Jesse gave her a weird look. "You sure do have a strange definition of fun."

"Well what do you think is fun?" Leslie asked, surprising Jesse so badly that he stuttered.

"I-I don't know."

Leslie was silent for a moment, before she asked, "Well, you wanna do something?"

May Belle piped up, "Yeah, let's do something. What should we do?"

"You can't do it," Jess interjected with a frown at his sister.

"Can't do what?"

"What we're doing," Jess shot back irritated. May Belle stopped and turned around to walk the other way.

Leslie frowned slightly, before speaking, "Hey May Belle, I don't use my barbies so much anymore; if you'd like you can have them."

May Belle brightened immediately, "To keep for real?"

"Sure," Leslie shrugged.

"Thanks!" May Belle turned and ran away, but Leslie kept walking.

"I'd love to have a sister," Jess heard Leslie muse, and he couldn't help but laugh.

"I have four of them, and I'd trade them all for a good dog," Jesse muttered causing Leslie to snicker.

"That's not very nice, Jess," she told him jokingly, and Jesse shrugged, "Yeah, well my sister's aren't very nice either, so it's fair game."

"What makes you say that?" Leslie asked curiously, and Jesse grimaced.

"They all disrespect my privacy; call me names; and I'm forced to do all their chores while they sit around and watch stupid television shows," Jesse told her, and surprisingly, he didn't feel nauseous talking about his home life. That was a rare occurrence.

Leslie didn't say anything to appease him, but instead of being all sympathetic she just told Jesse the truth. "I would say I'm sorry, and that I know how you feel, but considering I'm an only child, we both know that that would be a lie."

Leslie tossed her backpack onto the ground and smiled at Jesse when he did the same. "I _am_ sorry that I don't understand where you're coming from so that I could give you good advice, but the only thing I can say that could suffice as some sort of consolation…" Leslie trailed off, noticing the lost look on Jesse's face.

"What?" she asked confused, and Jesse stared at her.

"What the _heck_ did you just say?" he asked incredulously, "Suffice? Consolation? Seriously, Leslie if I could change shapes, I'd transform into a question mark, right about now."

Leslie laughed loudly, and Jesse found her amusement infectious. Soon they were practically rolling around on the ground laughing at the stupidity of what Jesse just said.

After a few minutes, the two finally gained control of their amusement, and started walking again as Leslie explained to Jesse what those two words meant.

"As I was saying, all I can tell you is that how we survive makes us who we are, Jess," Leslie finished, and Jesse nodded.

"So does that mean that I should just stick it out, and when it ends, I'll be a better person for it?" Jesse inquired, and Leslie nodded.

Jess smiled at her, and Leslie smiled back, before doing a perfect cartwheel, and back hand spring. He gawked and Leslie burst into another fit of laughter.

"Whoa, how'd you learn to do that?" he asked surprised.

"Gymnastics for almost seven years would enable you to do that too, you know?" Leslie told him smiling, and Jesse grinned.

"Can you teach me?" he asked, and she nodded enthusiastically.

"That was the one thing I _hated_ to give up when we moved here. Gymnastics is a lot like flying. It makes you feel powerful and weightless; almost as though gravity doesn't exist," Leslie told him.

"Running makes you feel that way too, you know," Jesse said nonchalantly, and Leslie glanced at him.

"I like running, but I haven't done it here—speaking of around my house—yet. Does it really feel that good?"

"Yes," Jesse answered immediately, and Leslie smiled mischievously at him, "Race you to the end of the road?"

"Yeah," he spoke to thin air, because Leslie was already running, and Jesse laughed, "Hey! That's _cheating_!"

"There's no official starting line, so I could just be running to that!" Leslie called back to him, and Jesse laughed, "What does _that_ mean?!"

"_It means I'm not cheating, and you can't say I was_!"

Leslie sped up, and Jesse laughed, chasing after her. He caught up to her pretty easily, and the two ran straight through about three miles of dirt road, until they came to a clearing.

Leaping over logs and holes with ease, Leslie beat Jesse by a long shot; something he wasn't necessarily happy about, but this time he didn't mind as much.

They meandered through the forest in silence, before Jesse asked a question that had been bothering him for awhile now, "What about sharks?"

"Huh?" Leslie asked, and Jesse repeated his question.

"You know when you go scuba-ing or whatever it's called."

"Jess, I've never been scuba diving in my life," Leslie admitted sounding amused at the stunned expression on Jesse's face.

"So you lied?" he asked as they began walking across a fallen tree.

Leslie spun to face him, surprisingly keeping her balance. "I didn't lie Jess. I just made it up. It's different. "

"How so?" Jesse inquired as they began climbing up a small hill of rocks near the creek, but Leslie didn't answer. Instead she gasped in awe, and ran towards a large rope that was hanging near the side of the creek.

"Do you see that?" she asked enthusiastically, and Jesse nodded.

"That's been there forever, I wouldn't trust it."

Leslie ignored him, and grabbed the rope, before stepping up, and swinging across, her head tilted backwards. As she landed near Jesse, she smiled, "Try it and hold your head back. It feels like you're flying."

Hesitantly, he did as asked and Leslie was thrilled with the amazed expression on his face. The two spent the next hour swinging across the rope, and chatting easily.

As Leslie landed the last time; Jesse glanced at his watch, and was surprised to find that more than two hours had passed since they'd left home. "Hey Leslie!" he called out to the girl who was studying the rope with an intensity Jesse found startling, but he ignored it in favor of something more important.

"We should head home, Leslie," Jesse said softly, "It's almost six o'clock." Leslie glanced over her shoulder at him, and nodded.

"I guess we should," she muttered begrudgingly as she dropped the rope, and skipped over to him, "I wish we could fly home though. It'd be much faster."

"You really are obsessed with flying, huh?" Jesse asked quietly as he and Leslie made their way back home both having a bunch of homework waiting for them.

"Why wouldn't I be?" Leslie started as she hopped on a log; balancing herself easily as she walked along it, "Seriously Jesse think about it. How amazing would it be if I could just leap into the air and let myself float with the wind? Oh, I can just imagine it!"

Leslie spread her arms out like the wingspan of an airplane and started making whooshing sounds as she ran the rest of the way along the log, before she leapt into the air and landed neatly on her feet.

"My hair blowing everywhere; my mouth drying in the wind, but all that wouldn't matter," she cried as she spun in circles, and ran up the trunk of a tree, staring up through the leaves as they cast shadows over her features. Jesse thought her bottle-green eyes stood out piercingly in the shade.

"All I would think about would be the birds flapping their wings next to me, and the currents carrying me wherever they please! It'd be like a daily adventure, but one that would last forever and ever; it'd be neverending," Leslie spoke mystically, her voice tinged with hope and awe. It really made Jesse stop for a moment; he could almost feel what Leslie described.

"The only thing I'd be worried about was a bird deciding that my mouth was a good place to nest," Jesse muttered, and Leslie's eyes snapped open as she burst out laughing.

"_Oh my guppies_, Jesse," she laughed, almost losing her balance and falling from the tree as she hurried back towards him.

Jesse giggled, "Guppies, Les?"

But, Leslie had frozen, and she was staring at him, her mouth agape. "Jesse Aarons, did you just _giggle_?" she asked in disbelief. Jesse stiffened, and he quickly shook his head.

"Nope, that was a _chortle_," he said hurriedly, and Leslie's lips twitched.

"Chortle, Jess?" she asked dubiously, and Jess blushed slightly, "Do you even know what a chortle is?"

"Erm…" Jesse shut up fast when Leslie burst into a fit of giggles.

"It's a _man-ish_ giggle, and that's all I'm saying," Leslie teased. Jess glared at her, before swiping half-heartedly in her direction. Leslie laughed as she ducked, before running away, yelling, "Catch me if you can, _giggle_ man!"

"Hey!" Jesse yelled back indignantly, taking off after Leslie, who squealed and ran faster.

By the time, they ran the four and a half miles back home both were sweaty and out of breath, but both had big smiles on their faces. Jogging slowly eventually progressed into walking, and the two were talking pretty easily.

"So do you get all your flexibility and endurance from gymnastics?" Jesse asked curiously, and Leslie nodded.

"Mostly, because we had to run about three miles everyday as a requirement for class," Leslie answered as they reached their abandoned backpacks.

"I guess I should go," Jesse muttered, "I have math and history homework to do."

Leslie nodded and Jesse watched as she turned to walk away, but something made him call to her again. "Hey Leslie, if you want to watch that program tomorrow night, I'm sure my parents won't mind you coming over," he offered, and Leslie smiled.

"Thanks but no thanks Jess. I was teased mercilessly at school for not owning a television, and there's no way that I'm going to let them think they beat me into submission," she replied cheerfully, and Jesse laughed.

"Bye Leslie!" he called and she waved back as she began jogging towards her house,

"Bye question mark!"

--

That night after everything—including homework, dinner, chores and his shower—as Jesse crawled into bed, he sat quietly, staring out of his bedroom window, just like the day before, but this time he drifted off into a contented slumber.

Jesse was in awe. '_I might have just made a friend.'_ The mere thought put a bright smile on his face.

* * *

READ AND REVIEW! I'd love to get some feedback on how I'm doing with Jesse's character. Are his reactions real enough? Is there something that I should change? Do I do Leslie Burke's amazingness enough credit? It would be wonderful to know.

-_TellNoOne_


	3. Chapter 3

_Disclaimer: On First Chapter_

* * *

_**Till' I Collapse**_

_**Part One: Discovering Leslie Burke**_

_**Chapter Three**_

(Please read and review)

* * *

_**August 7, 2007(Thursday)**_

_**The Aarons Residence**_

_**8:08 PM**_

"Jess the _phone_!" Startled Jesse turned his attention from his essay he had been working on to stare at his sister Brenda as she tossed him the cordless. He was a little shocked. He'd never gotten a phone call from anyone besides his grandmother.

"Uh, thanks?" he said, more as a question than anything else as he took the phone.

Placing it next to his ear, Jesse hesitantly said, "Hello?"

"_Hi Jess!" _The person on the phone sounded nothing like his elderly grandmother.

"Who is this?" he asked bewildered.

There was an answering giggle, and he almost dropped the phone. "Leslie?" he asked in disbelief.

"_I'm shocked giggle man!" _she crowed into the phone, and Jesse could practically taste her amusement, "_I can't believe you got it right on your first guess. Was that hard for you?"_

Jesse scoffed as he leaned back against the sofa, "Oh shut up, Les. It's not that often that I get confused."

Leslie laughed, and it caused Jesse to smile for some reason. _"So Aarons, how was that documentary you had to watch?" _Jesse cringed slightly. The idea of finding life in the ocean was certainly cool, but watching someone else do it wasn't very interesting at all.

"Uh, it was pretty boring. The only part I thought was cool was when the camera man almost got bitten by a shark," Jesse told her.

"_Jesse that's horrible!" _she gasped into the phone, _"You shouldn't find that cool! What if it was you that almost got turned into a midnight snack for an overgrown carnivorous fish?" _

Her indignation made Jesse crack up, and Leslie soon followed. The sounds of laughter must have made his mom curious because she poked her head into the room followed closely by his father.

"Who's that, Jesse?" she inquired bemusedly, and Jess calmed himself down enough to answer her.

"It's a friend," he replied quickly, before his attention went back to the girl on the phone, "I guess that if you put it that way; it does seem kind of cruel, but I can't help it, Les."

Jesse heard Leslie sigh dramatically, "_I know, Jess. It's because you're a boy and you find stuff like blood and gore, and people blowing up cool."_

"Hey that's not fair," Jesse protested into the phone, completely missing his parent's shared look, "You're stereotyping me, and you said that you didn't like doing that. Besides, I don't like seeing blood and gore, it actually makes me a bit nauseous."

"_Fine, fine, sorry Jesse." _she replied sincerely, and Jesse smiled.

"Why'd you call me anyway?" he asked curiously as he fiddled with his pencil.

"_I had finished Mrs. Myers essay yesterday, and I was done with my homework, so I got bored, and I called you," _When Jesse heard Leslie's reply, he almost dropped the phone.

"You called me because you were bored?" he asked, trying to make sure he understood.

"_Not because I was bored, per say. More like because I was bored, and I wanted to talk to you," _Leslie admission made Jesse grin widely.

"Oh," he said goofily, and Leslie burst out laughing.

"_Are you grinning over there, Jesse? Or is this how you talk when you're exceedingly happy?" _

Jesse wiped the goofy smile off his face, and said, "No, I'm just acting silly, because I felt like it."

"_Ri-ight,"_ Leslie's disbelieving tone reached his ears_, "Whatever you say, Jesse. I have to go help my parents with some furniture downstairs. I'll see ya tomorrow, Jess."_

"Goodnight, Leslie," Jesse told her quietly.

"_Goodnight, Jesse."_

The click of the phone did nothing to lighten Jesse's suddenly good mood, and he attacked his assignments with a new vigor. It turned out to be the best essay he'd ever written; backed up by the fact that he got an A plus the next class period.

--

_**August 8, 2007(Friday)**_

_**Lark Creek Elementary School**_

_**Math Class**_

_**1:10PM**_

Jesse was bored. He wanted to yawn so badly, but seeing as he was seated almost directly in front of his math teacher's line of vision; he reconsidered that idea. Sighing quietly, Jess rested his cheek on the palm of his hand and stared around the classroom; hoping to see something that might amuse him for the next fifteen minutes.

His eyes roamed past the door, before they flew back and Jesse inhaled sharply. He rubbed his eyes to make sure he wasn't daydreaming, but when he opened them again, she was still there.

Leslie Burke's face was plastered against the glass window of the math classroom, and Jesse could see her peering inside curiously. When she caught sight of him her face lit up and she grinned maniacally, before she waved at him. Leslie suddenly began fanning herself and pretending to claw at the door of the classroom while mouthing something that looked incredibly like I love you.

Then he figured out that she was pretending to be a crazed fan, and he burst out laughing in the middle of class, causing his teacher to swing around and stare. Jesse was too busy laughing it up to care, especially when he heard some teacher yell outside the door.

"_Hey, young lady what do you thin—don't you run away from me_!"

Jesse saw Leslie wave at him, before her blonde head disappeared in a flash. He briefly saw Mr. Thompson, a heavyset man with peppered hair, hobbling past the room in hot pursuit of one of the fastest runners in the sixth grade.

The thought made Jesse laugh even harder than before. Talk about entertainment Les, he thought to himself, while wiping tears of laughter from his eyes.

"Do you know who that young lady was, Mr. Aarons?" The math teacher asked seriously, and Jesse glanced up at him as he calmed himself down.

"I think she was one of my fans, sir."

--

_**August 9, 2007**_

_**The Aarons Residence**_

_**8:13AM**_

"_Jess!"_ Slightly irritated by his sister's voice yelling for him, Jesse glanced up from his notebook to glare at May Belle as she entered the divider between the two "rooms" without knocking.

"What _now_?" he growled at her.

First Brenda came along making snide comments about his _odor_, and how boys shouldn't be allowed to leave their rooms without taking _at least_ _five_ showers a day. He'd firmly told her that the reason he smelled was because he just ran almost six miles, and then asked what _her_ excuse was.

Then Ellie had come barging in his room, right after he'd gotten out of the shower to fuss at him for losing her backpack, because her literature book was missing. Jess didn't even know that Ellie had a_ backpack_; much less a _literature book_. He'd kicked her out of his room after telling her just that.

He was really tired of their nagging, and all he wanted to do was have some peace and quiet so he could draw.

May Belle frowned at him, "Jess, I called for you _three_ times! Your friend is on the phone."

"Huh?" he asked blankly for a moment, wondering who she could possibly be talking about, before it clicked—_Leslie_—and he instantly snatched the phone from May Belle.

As May Belle left with a sniff, Jesse figured that he really needed to get used to having a _friend_. The idea seemed so preposterous that Jess didn't know whether he wanted it to be real or not. He knew that it was sad that he'd gotten so used to be friendless that having one felt _weird_.

"Hello?" he asked uncertainly, and was relieved when he heard the voice on the other end.

"_Hi Jess,"_ Leslie piped up cheerfully, "_how has your Saturday morning been so far?"_

"Horrible," Jesse told her absently as he leaned back onto his pillow, placing an arm underneath his neck.

"_Why so bad_?" she asked, her voice concerned. For some reason, Jess pictured her standing there with a frown on her face.

Jesse sighed, "My sisters have been harping on me all day, and now my dad will be working Saturdays. My sisters don't notice how my parents seem stressed lately—even more so than usual—and I hate seeing my mom so worn out."

Leslie didn't speak for a moment, and Jess knew the question was coming before she even asked. "_What about your dad, Jess_?"

Emotional rage that had been buried so deep seemed to rise in Jesse—enough to take both _him and Leslie_—by surprise.

"_How the hell would I know, Les?" _he practically hissed into the phone.

Leslie remained silent, and Jesse continued, "The man doesn't talk to me; other than to remind me to do chores or to ask me how I'm willing to help the family out. I try to be the best son possible, hoping for some sort of recognition, but all I get is silence. Do you know how much it hurts to have worked all day on something for your father, and he doesn't say he's proud of you? Not even that, but he'll tell Ellie that he's never been more proud when she comes home with a D minus on her paper; when I'm not allowed to get anything less than a B or I get yelled at?"

Jesse stopped, before he whispered, "How am I supposed to feel as though I amount to anything if the one person I want to see me as special ignores my presence?"

"_You can't_," Leslie replied sadly, and Jess had never felt anything like the rush of trust that filled him in that moment.

It meant a lot to him that Leslie didn't try to put a positive spin on anything he'd said or described. She didn't sugar coat the truth, and for her to be as honest as she was being with him made him grateful that they'd met. Jess realized that he'd needed someone to just listen to him.

Not discuss it, but just listen to the words he was saying and Leslie had done that.

"_Jesse maybe we can make this day a little better for you?"_ Leslie spoke hopefully, and Jesse's eyebrow rose.

"How would we do that?"

"_Meet me at the end of the road; where the bus drops us off, but tell your mom that you won't be back for awhile_," Leslie instructed him mysteriously, and Jesse apprehensively agreed to do as she asked.

"What exactly are we doing, Leslie?" he questioned warily, but he only got a sly giggle in reply.

"_I promise you'll have fun_," Was all she said, before the line went dead.

Jesse stared at the phone in surprise, before chuckling under his breath as he slipped on his sneakers. He checked his face in the mirror and smoothed out some of the wrinkles in his black-sleeved white mid-sectioned baseball tee.

Jesse picked up a black leather belt that he'd had for years, and slipped it through the loop holes of his dark wash denim jeans, before he walked out of the room and downstairs.

As he walked out of the house, he glanced at his mother and said, "I'll be gone for awhile."

She nodded in acknowledgement, and Jesse left the house at leisure pace, his hands shoved in his jeans pockets. As he neared the fork of the road, Jesse stopped and gawked at Leslie. She was wearing a bright green t-shirt over dark denim jean shorts with blue high-tops. Her hair was loose, but she wore a bright smile.

Well, though her outfit surprised him it was the two gleaming motorbike helmets she held in her hands that took him by surprise. Leslie waved him over. He jogged lightly in her direction, and she tossed him a bright red helmet.

"What are these for?" he asked curiously, and Leslie grinned mischievously, before thumbing over her shoulder.

"Well, my parents said the only way we could ride them was if we used the helmets," Jesse vaguely heard Leslie speak as he was far too flabbergasted by the sight of two spotless four wheelers sitting in the Burkes' driveway.

"_You're kidding_?" he exclaimed loudly, and Leslie smirked.

"Nope," she told him smugly, "Sorry, Aarons, but you're going to tour the towns near Lark Creek; _Leslie Burke style_."

Jesse laughed, "As if I'm gonna have a problem with _that_." They hurried over to the four wheelers. Jesse instantly situating himself on the matching red one as Leslie got on the metallic blue one.

Jesse heard Leslie rev up her engine, and he followed suit. "Let's roll out!" Leslie yelled excitedly, and Jesse nodded at her as she placed her helmet on. She yelled, "These helmets have radio communicators so we can talk to each other."

Using her left hand, Leslie flipped her visor closed and Jesse copied her.

"_Ready Aarons?"_

He heard her voice—it was a strange, because it sounded like her voice was coming from his head—loud and clear, and Jesse replied,

"_Roger that, Burke_." Leslie accelerated, and she was followed closely by Jesse, who let out a shout of exhilaration as they flew down the dirt lane; kicking up clouds of dust in their wake. From the rearview mirror, Jess saw Brenda and Ellie walk out of the house wearing twin looks of absolute shock. May Belle was standing there shrieking madly, and his mom was laughing.

Leslie's voice came on again, _"Seems like your siblings are a tad jealous."_ She told him brightly, and Jesse smiled behind his helmet.

"_Yeah, but at least my mom looks better than she has in days,"_ he commented.

"_If May Belle doesn't stop she's going to be hoarse for a week_," Leslie told him as they turned left onto the main road.

Jesse stated dryly, "_And that would be a bad thing, why_?"

Leslie laughed heartily at that.

* * *

Review please.


	4. Chapter 4

_Disclaimer: On First Chapter._

_**

* * *

**_

Till' I Collapse

_**Part One: Discovering Leslie Burke**_

_**Chapter Four**_

(Please read and review)

* * *

_**August 11, 2007(Monday)**_

_**Lark Creek Elementary School**_

_**School Bus**_

_**6:36 AM**_

"Good morning, Jesse!" Leslie greeted him as he came running up the lane. He slowed to a walk as he waved back to her, and he smirked as he saw her outfit. She was wearing a bright pink tank top over a long-sleeved orange shirt that had random smiley-faces up and down the sleeves. She had on dark blue skinny jeans and a pair of vibrant green high-top chucks that were laced with rainbow laces. She had on at least four neon bracelets, and he noticed that she had studs the shape of a rainbow in her ears.

Leslie's short blonde hair was pulled back half way on top of her head, and strands of blonde hair fell across her face; it definitely drew one's attention to her eyes.

"Morning, Leslie," he replied, coming to a stop next to her.

His eyes twinkled at her in amusement, and she cocked her head to the side, obviously wondering what was so funny. "Your outfit makes me look boring," he told her finally, and Leslie's eyes widened slightly.

She looked him over, and grinned as she spotted the dark blue sleeved, white mid-sectioned baseball tee that he wore with khaki shorts, and white shoes—the ones he colored over the stripes with permanent marker.

"Don't say that Jesse," she said brightly, sidling closer and bumping him with her shoulder, "I happen to think that you look good."

Jesse blushed at the compliment.

"Your outfit fits your personality, because it's normal but mysterious. I can never know what's going on inside your head with that outfit," Leslie informed him truthfully, "It's a tad scary. After all, how else am I supposed to know if you're actually some eleven-year old psychopath reborn? It's not like the answer is written on your face or anything."

Jesse laughed, "Yeah, but the same with yours. I don't know if you're actually some reincarnated twelfth century axe-murderer; even though I know for a fact that you can be _frighteningly eccentric_."

"No fair!" Leslie playfully protested, and the two laughed as Jess spotted May Belle running in their direction just when the bus pulled up.

"Oh here, Jess," Leslie said as they walked to the bus. She pulled out a blue Ziploc container and handed that and a small carton of milk to Jess.

"What is it?" he asked surprised as May Belle sped past them and onto the bus.

Leslie smiled, "Why Jesse, its breakfast!"

"Meaning?" Jesse asked as he plopped down into a seat, scooting next to the window and stretching his legs out on the seat as Leslie sat down behind him. She leaned over, resting her chin are her forearms as she sat down on the seat; putting her knees beneath her.

"Meaning that those are homemade blueberry- sausage breakfast sandwiches," Leslie said proudly, and Jess looked at her in surprise, before opening the container.

The delicious scent hit his nose immediately, and his mouth watered. He didn't hesitate in biting into the sandwich, and Jesse experienced a little piece of heaven.

"Wow!" he exclaimed, before digging into the food.

Leslie's green eyes twinkled with mirth as she giggled insanely, "Olive juice, Jess."

Jesse raised an eyebrow, and resolved to ask about that later, but for now, he was more concerned with eating before Janice Avery and her minions decided they were hungry.

Once done, Jesse rubbed his stomach and shoved the remains of his breakfast in his backpack, before peering over the seat at Leslie, who was sitting Indian-style and reading a large book.

"Do I get free breakfast everyday?" he asked teasingly, and Leslie scoffed, not taking her eyes off the page she was on.

"You wish, Aarons," she retorted, "You only get those when I make them, which isn't very often."

"You made that?" Jesse gaped, and Leslie nodded, "Wow, you cook really well."

"Thanks," she replied, flipping the page.

"What are you reading?"

"My mom's new book; she wants to see how I like it, before sending it to her publisher. I take the time to add in little notes of what I think she should maybe put in or change," Leslie said, finally looking up at Jesse, "We've done this since I turned nine. It's a ritual now, because every book that I've corresponded with her on has become a New York bestseller."

"Cool," Jesse said in response, and Leslie finished off the chapter quickly, before shutting the book and putting it away.

"Speaking of writing, what did you do your essay on?"

Leslie's eyes sparkled, "My kitchen."

"_What_?" Jesse replied astonished, and he gawked at her over the bus seat causing Leslie to burst out laughing.

"I wrote my essay on the social status of kitchenware," she replied seriously, "The title of my essay is 'The Cutlery Caste System'."

"Are you serious?" Jesse questioned in disbelief, and Leslie nodded, smiling. "Geez Louise Leslie Mrs. Myers is going to _wig out_."

Jesse and Leslie stared at each other for a moment longer, before they both collapsed into fits of giggles—in Jesse's case_ chortles_—but neither noticed the strange looks they were getting from their peers.

----

_**August 12, 2007(Tuesday)**_

_**Lark Creek Elementary School**_

_**Playground**_

_**12:00 PM**_

At lunch, Jesse took Leslie to his 'lunch spot' on the playground. It was a fairly isolated place by a large oak tree. Jesse showed Leslie that from there they could see the entire playground, but no one could see them from there because they were partially hidden by the incline of the hill.

She plopped down on the cool grass, and kicked off her shoes with a smile. "It's going to take you forever and a day to get those high tops back on, you know," Jesse told her and laughed when she opened her eyes to glare at him for a moment.

She kicked her legs into his lap and wiggled her metallic green painted toes.

"So what? I'll just go back barefoot." Jesse shook his head at her antics, and pulled out his lunch. A peanut butter and jelly sandwich, two apples, and a juice box.

"That is so not healthy, Jesse," she said in mock-anger, before opening her own bagged lunch. She pulled out a three Ziploc bags: one had carrots, another had celery stalks and the last had a large sandwich cut in halves.

Leslie picked up Jesse's sandwich and juice box, and threw them in a nearby trash can. He watched her do it in disbelief. She opened her sandwich bag and gave him half of her sandwich, before digging around in her satchel for a water bottle.

She pulled out two and gave one to Jesse, who was surprised to find it still cold. He stared at her in slight shock as she pulled out a celery stick and began munching on it.

"What was that about, Leslie?" he asked bewildered, and she grinned.

"Sorry, but if you ever want to beat me in that race you better start training now. Healthy foods help your system digest faster which means you get more energy, and you run much better when you've got more energy," Leslie explained earnestly, and Jesse stared at her, before he burst out laughing.

"You're awfully confident, aren't you?" he asked still chuckling, and Leslie shook her head as Jess tossed her an apple.

"Not in the least," she said quietly, before biting into the apple. "It's mostly an act I put on so no one can see how insecure I can really be, but a lot of it's just me too. I didn't have many friends back at my old school. I guess they thought I was too different."

Jesse shook his head, "I agree that you're different, but you seem friendly enough."

Leslie gave him a look, "Jess, you didn't exactly take a liking to me either when we first met."

"Yeah about that; I'm sorry, I was just upset that I was upstaged by a girl when I was so close to winning." Jesse apologized, before biting into the sandwich. It was really good and it also gave him a chance to avoid further embarrassment.

Leslie smiled behind her apple, before she slyly uncapped her water bottle and squirted Jesse with it.

"Hey!" he exclaimed in shock, feeling the cold water hit his cheek. Leslie collapsed into a fit of giggles, but she stopped when she felt a blast of cold water hit her face.

"Jess!" she hissed, still laughing, and Jess dodged her next spray of water, but she got him with her second one. The water squirting escalated into a full-out water fight as they chased each other around the tree and back and forth across the hills. They finally stopped when both of their jackets were drenched, and their water bottles practically empty.

Settling down, Jesse striped off his jacket to let the sun and winds dry it as much as possible, and Leslie did the same. The two sat side-by-side chattering and eating their chicken sandwiches; all in all it had been a very good day for Jesse Aarons and Leslie Burke.

----

_**August 12, 2007(Tuesday)**_

_**The Aarons Residence**_

_**7:12 PM**_

Jesse—feeling relaxed after completing his math homework—was just about to lay down on the couch and maybe sketch in his notebook; when he heard his mom exclaim in surprise. She was blushing, and Jesse wondered why as she slowly read the front of the envelope again, and put it down on the table.

"What's wrong, Mary?" Jesse's father asked worriedly as he looked up from his newspaper. May Belle was watching curiously, and even Brenda and Ellie had stopped bickering over the channel to listen in. Not much made his mom flustered, but this obviously did.

"Oh, uh, I opened someone else's letter that's all," she mumbled embarrassed, "I'm sorry Jesse; I guess I didn't read who it was addressed to well enough."

Jesse was confused, and it must have shown on his face as everyone peered between him and his mother.

"This letter's for you, Jess," she said apologetically, "I didn't read anything, but the heading."

Jesse blinked in shock. "Who would send me a letter?" he asked curiously, and his mom flipped the envelope back over.

Her tone was bewildered when she said, "Someone named Rainbow Gymnast." And Jesse's confusion vanished as a smile broke out over his face.

He leapt up from the couch, and snatched the letter from his mother and grinned at the paper he pulled out. The words were written in metallic blue and the paper had hand-drawn pictures of a girl doing gymnastics all around the border. Each was in a different color.

Jesse grinned as he read,

'_Dear Question Mark,_

_I'm quite sure that you're surprised to be getting a letter, but there's a first for everything, huh? ;-). In my science class, Mr. Thomas was talking about how there was supposed to be a meteor shower tonight, and I was wondering if you wanted to watch it with me? My parents bought me a state-of-the-art telescope last year for my birthday, and I thought you might be interested in seeing it from my balcony. _

_Don't worry we're not going to be sitting out in the cold. If you agree to come, I plan on making some hot chocolate, and getting some wool blankets to keep warm with. If you're up for it, just give me a call._

_With XOXO,_

_Rainbow Gymnast_

_P.S- It supposed to start around eight tonight, so as soon as you get this call me ASAP. _

_472-9845.'_

Jesse looked up from the letter, and asked, "Can I go somewhere?"

His mom looked surprised, "Where?"

"Uh, to a friend's house to watch the meteor shower; I promise to be back before eleven," Jesse pleaded, and his dad scoffed.

"Jess, you're eleven, and your curfew is nine o'clock."

"I know dad, but this is really important to me," Jessie shot back, "It's the first time I've been invited anywhere."

Jesse's mom and dad shared a long-suffering look, "Okay Jesse you can go to your friend's house, but I want you back here at eleven o'clock."

"Yes!" Jesse exclaimed, and he quickly hugged his mom and dad, shocking them both before he bolted from the room to call Leslie. She answered on the first ring.

"_Hey Jess!"_ she said happily, and Jesse grinned.

"Hey Les, my parents said I can go as long as I'm back home by eleven."

"_Cool Clips, Jess! I'll see you in forty-five?"_ she asked cheerfully, and Jesse laughed at her phrase.

"'Kay Les, see ya."

Jesse hung up the phone and ran upstairs to the bathroom. He needed to shower.

Almost half an hour later, Jesse finally exited the longest shower of his life. He towel-dried his hair, and then hurried into his room to get dressed. He threw on a rustic red t-shirt with maroon and gold three-quarter sleeves along with a pair of khaki cargo shorts, before putting on new socks. He rushed back to the bathroom to brush his teeth and put on deodorant.

Jess glanced at his watch, and then cursed under his breath, before he dashed downstairs, past his family, and towards Leslie's house.

As soon as he got there, Jesse spotted Leslie waving wildly from one of the windows, her face pressed hard into the glass. He laughed at her as she let him inside.

"Hi Jess, come on! No time for talk, the meteor shower should start any minute!" Leslie cried, grabbing his hand and yanking him inside. She shut and locked the door behind him, and then dragged him through the foyer and towards the stairs.

Jesse was rather surprised by all the stuff the Burkes had been able to accomplish in two weeks. As he was dragged up two flights of stairs, Jesse figured that the whole house was completed with the exception of a large room on the first floor. On the third floor of the house, Leslie finally slowed down as she led him from the head of the stairs and towards a room with double doors.

Jesse was rather gob smacked when Leslie threw open the doors, and he saw her bedroom for the first time. Leslie had one wall that was white with checkered patterns painted on in various shades of greens, and blues. On that same wall, Leslie had created a mural of some sort; it had pictures, posters, and snippets of writing everywhere.

There two blue walls and a green one—where her bed was—and she had smiley face covers that were patterned with rainbow smileys. Her desk was huge, taking up a whole corner, but it had a computer, printer, and iPod dock organized neatly along the light oak surface.

Her desk chair was swivel and it was bright orange with her name engraved on the back. Leslie had her own bathroom, and even a miniature library that he could see was full of shelves that were filling fast. It was hidden behind more double doors but these were made of glass. Leslie had drawn a comic along the glass panes with window markers.

Her floor was solid oak that matched her desk and her balcony doors looked the same as the ones that led to her library, but these were outlined with curtains and they had comics too. She had those weird fiber optic lamps and another tall lamp with a rainbow of colored shades.

Leslie smiled at the amazed look on Jesse's face as she gently led him out onto her balcony, where she helped him sit down in one of her neon colored lazy-boys. She was even nice enough to let him have the green one instead of the yellow one.

"Your room looks like a house," he told her disbelievingly and Leslie laughed.

"My parents are world famous authors Jesse, and I admit that they spoil me, but not in normal ways," Leslie mused quietly as she handed Jesse a mug of hot-cocoa from the coffee table. "They don't let me watch television and I'm blocked from certain websites on my computer, but other than that I have to work for my stuff."

"What does that mean?" Jesse asked, before taking a sip of the warm chocolaty liquid.

"Well, if I want something, I get a list of things I'd have to do to get it. For example, to get my iPod; I had to rake leaves five times, get a ninety-four percent or higher on my math test, read five books, wash their cars, and agree to take violin, piano, and ballet lessons," Leslie stated matter-of-factly, "but it wasn't so bad because when I got the iPod, I got all the accessories I wanted as well."

Jesse gaped. "Wow."

"Yeah, and the more expensive it is, the more I have to do to get it. My computer I had to walk dogs for a month—for all of my neighbors—then I had to mow the grass, trim hedges, and weed my mother's garden; I had to volunteer for more than thirty hours, babysit for two weeks, clean out the garage, and do all the laundry for two months. It's basically like doing all the work to pay for something, but never actually seeing the money until I get what I had to do all the work for," Leslie explained, and then she glanced over at Jesse.

"Understand?"

"Sorry, Jesse's not home right now, but leave a message and I'll make sure he gets back to you," Jess muttered.

"Huh?"

"I'm currently question mark."

Leslie laughed and the two relaxed. "Where are your parents anyways?" Jesse asked quietly, and Leslie's mood seemed to drop slightly.

"They've been at a meeting with their publishers all day. They most likely won't be back until late," she replied, and Jesse frowned.

"How late are you talking, Les?"

"Probably midnight," Leslie shrugged, "I can never give a sure time, because this is when the editors practically gut and repair the books; checking for grammatical errors, plot holes and such. I went once; it was horrible," Leslie admitted, and Jesse's frown deepened.

"Are you going to be alright by yourself?" he asked, and Leslie nodded.

There was silence for a moment; both sipping their hot chocolate and watching the skies for any sign of a meteorite. Soon however, Jesse saw Leslie looking him over, and her gaze stopped on his shirt. "You really like baseball tees, huh?" she asked curiously, and Jesse shrugged.

"My dad works at a hardware store that's right next to _Alonzo's Baseball Thrift Shop_. So he buys all my shirts there for cheap," Jesse told her quietly, "My family's doesn't have much money."

Leslie didn't say anything to him and Jesse rambled on, "I mean, we're not completely broke, but we're pretty close to it, and I'm usually the one who gets the cheapest things. Boys clothes are easy for my parents to buy at Thrift stores considering we don't have as many hygienic issues to worry about."

Jesse finally stopped himself, and he wondered exactly why he had told her so much.

"Why do you ask?" he finally said.

"Well, they're all I've seen you wear since the first day of school, and I was curious." she replied softly, and Jesse nodded.

"I like them too, you know." Leslie said suddenly, and Jesse looked confused.

She giggled quietly, "I mean that I like baseball tees as well, question mark."

"Oh," Jesse said sheepishly, and the two laughed.

"Sorry about spilling my guts to you a minute ago, Leslie." he whispered in embarrassment, causing Leslie to glance at him.

"No worries, Jess," she replied quietly, and Jesse was taken aback when he felt her hand on his. Jesse stared at her, and Leslie smiled, "That's what friends are for, right?"

Jesse grinned at her as their fingers entwined together. He could feel his face heat up by about ten degrees. Leslie was red too. "Yeah, that's right;_ friends._"

No other words were spoken as the sky exploded with flashing fire. Both gasped and watched for over an hour as the meteorite shower rained down through the skies. Neither really noticed that their hands stayed together the entire time.

But Jesse Aarons knew one thing for sure as he headed home that night. He glanced back towards the house, where Leslie stood waving from the window and smiled to himself.

He had made a really good friend.

* * *

_Thanks to all who stopped by to read! Hope you enjoyed it, and I'd love to get some feedback as well._

_-TellNoOne_


	5. Chapter 5

_Disclaimer: On First Chapter... _

_**

* * *

**_

_**Till' I Collapse**_

_**Part One: Discovering Leslie Burke**_

_**Chapter Five**_

(Please read and review)

_**

* * *

**_

_**August 13, 2007(Wednesday)**_

_**Lark Creek Elementary School**_

_**English Class**_

Sitting in Mrs. Myers class between Scott Hoager and Gary Fulcher no longer posed the menace that it usually did for Jess. Now, the two seemed to be more annoying than the fear-inspiring nuisances they had once been to him. So for the first time, Jesse did not dread sitting down in his assigned seat—which might have had something to do with the fact that Leslie was making silly faces at him every time Mrs. Myers turned her back to the class.

Jesse was still tense with apprehension, but he couldn't contain the laughter that bubbled within him as he saw Leslie mock Gary's threatening voice from behind the red-haired acne-ridden kid.

He snorted once in hilarity, before smothering his amusement with his hand and pretending like he was writing notes on the current lecture. Mrs. Myers whipped around to glare at the class, and unable to spot the culprit; Scott offered his _kind_ assistance.

"Excuse me, Mrs. Myers, but Jess Aarons was laughing after he said something terribly rude about Gary," Scott told the teacher; simpering as though hurt, and Jesse's amusement faded instantly.

"What exactly did he say, Mr. Hoager?" The English teacher asked imposingly as she sent a glare in Jesse's direction.

"He said that he had an ugly face," Scott explained piteously, before whispering, "And we all know how emotional Gary is about his _illness_."

"Yeah, add that to the fact that you're his friend, Hoager," Jesse sneered, "I'm pretty sure being around you made him look even more like a troll."

"_Mr. Aarons!"_ Mrs. Myers cried in anger, and Leslie's eyes narrowed, before she dropped onto the floor. She signaled to Jesse to keep the teacher distracted, and he quickly caught on despite his bewilderment. "_I will not have you speaking to your fellow classmates like that!"_

"Well tell the little ding dong to leave me alone," Jesse ranted, "He's _always_ talking about my family, and making my life a living _hell_. Why don't you speak to him about it, so I won't have to!"

Jesse eyed Leslie crawling along the floor, and watched in disbelief—he of course automatically tuned out Mrs. Myers and the stunned silence of the classroom out to stare at Leslie—as his friend finally edged open the door.

Leslie disappeared for less than ten seconds, before she crawled back into the room just as Mrs. Myers anger exploded. "_Why I've never…" _

Jesse was saved as the school fire alarm went off and the sprinklers built into the ceiling turned on, spraying with a vengeance.

Jesse gawked at Leslie, and mouthed, "You did this?" And she nodded laughing as screams and the sound of running footsteps filled the hallways.

Jesse hopped over desks as kids ran out of the classroom, Mrs. Myers shrieking louder than they were as the class emptied into the halls. In minutes, every student was standing on the lawn of Lark Creek Elementary; shaking off water and speculating about what had happened.

Jesse surprised Leslie by picking her up around her waist and swinging her around in circles while she squealed. They both fell onto the grass laughing outrageously. The students of the elementary school spent the rest of the afternoon outside due to the flooding of the school.

Jesse and Leslie sat together—their shoes kicked off—chatting like never before and making silly faces at each other to see who would laugh first.

That was the first day that Jesse Aarons and Leslie Burke became known as Jess and Les.

----

_**August 13, 2007(Wednesday)**_

_**Cora Perry Neighborhood**_

_**The Creek**_

_**4:07PM**_

"We need a place," Leslie mused, and Jesse raised an eyebrow, "A place that's just ours; away from school, and all the Janice Avery's and Scott Hoager's of the world."

Leslie sat on top of a log an intense look on her face as Jess climbed up next to her. "Yeah, but when we go back to school there they are waiting for us."

"I'm not talking about just going home Jess. I mean something like a magical kingdom that only we can get to by using…this enchanted rope."

"I don't know, Leslie. _What if _questions are usually harder to answer than it is to ask," Jesse said picking at the log.

"Aren't all questions, Jess?" Leslie shot back absently, and Jesse gave her a look.

"You know what I mean, Les."

"Yeah, I know Jesse, but what's the harm in trying?" she asked, and Jesse shrugged.

Standing up, Leslie tightened her hand around the rope, and suddenly she was gone, swinging to the other side and landing in the brush. Jesse was taken aback by her abrupt disappearance, and worried when he didn't see her again.

"Leslie!" he called out, "_Leslie, this isn't funny_!"

There was no answer, and Jesse wasted no time swinging across. He really hoped nothing had happened to her. When he landed, he called her name again, and he heard her yelling for him, "Jess! Come see this!"

He followed the sound of her voice, and found her standing beside an abandoned truck. The bubbling excitement radiating from Leslie startled Jesse as he came to an abrupt halt near the other side of the truck. Leslie was running her hands over the filthy surface. Dirt cracked off and chips of paint slipped through her fingers as she bent over to study the inside of the truck.

The fierce crackling of fallen leaves and rotten twigs popping underneath her feet brought Jesse into a sort of trance. Air brushed across his face and he shivered at the sight of her turning around slowly. He could almost feel her heart pumping furiously in the thrill of her apparent discovery, and the sparkling of her bottle green eyes had his stomach feeling funny. Her serious tone of voice tugged him back to reality.

"Ah, Jess, they got so close," she sighed, her voice reflecting her sadness and Jesse stared at her open-mouthed.

"I don't know this game," he said warily, and Leslie only glanced at him over her shoulder.

"What game, Jess? This is for real," she said as she stepped away from the truck's shattered window and towards an opening in the trees. Her eyes were moving quickly around the forest, and Leslie gasped as a dragonfly blew past her, "Wow, a warrior from… the treetop provinces."

"Erm, try a dragonfly," Jess interjected, and Leslie rolled her eyes, but was distracted by another fascinating discovery. Bolting, Leslie ran towards it, and when she got to it, she stopped. She stared at the rotting old tree house, and Jesse ran to catch up with her.

"This is it, Jess," Leslie remarked dreamily as she climbed into the tree house, Jesse following her, "These are the ruins of what was once a great fortress and their people have been imprisoned. We're here to free them."

Jesse only stared in shock as Leslie spread her arms and yelled out, "Prisoners of the Dark Master, we have come to free you! Tell me if you can hear me." The wind gusted heavily, whipping Leslie's hair around her face and making Jesse falter.

"You've just got lucky timing. The wind's been blowing off and on all day," Jesse told her, and Leslie smiled.

"_I can't hear you!"_ she screamed, and the wind blew harder, forcing Jesse into the side of the tree house, and a beaming Leslie crawled down to smile at him.

"It needs a lot of work, but Jess, this is our magical kingdom. This is our place," she told him excitedly, and Jess reluctantly nodded, before glancing distractedly at his watch. _5:42, _it read, and Jesse inhaled sharply, feeling his eyes widen dramatically.

"Oh _crap_, Les, we've been out here for almost three hours!" he exclaimed, and Leslie whipped around to stare at him, horrified.

"What?!" she asked, grabbing his hand and moving closer so she could look at it herself. Leslie didn't notice that she was now standing directly in front of Jesse—her back almost touching his chest—but Jesse sure did, and he blushed heavily.

"_Snapple biscuits_ Jess! My mom is gonna kill me!" Leslie cried, before turning and looking at him. Jesse felt like giggling, but of course he didn't—_ahem_ men don't giggle.

"Snapple biscuits, Leslie?" he asked, trying hard not to laugh, and Leslie nudged him with her elbow.

"Forget it, Jesse, but we've got to get home, now! Like I said two seconds ago, my mom is gonna kill me!"

Jesse suddenly sobered up as they scrambled out of the tree house. "Your mom! My mom is going to fillet me and cook me for dinner if I'm not home by six o'clock on a school night."

Leslie giggled slightly, before they both broke into a dead sprint, running as fast as possible home. Approximately, four and a half miles later, they reached the fork where their paths split and both stopped, breathing hard.

"What time is it, Jess?" she asked, her eyes watering from exhaustion. Jess looked.

"It's _6:11_, Les," he told her, and Leslie dropped her head.

"_Oh my freaking giraffe_, we were so close!" she fumed, stomping her foot angrily, and Jesse would've laughed if he'd been able to breathe properly, "I guess I'll go and face my mother's wrath."

Jesse smiled at her slightly as Leslie fanned herself with one hand, and used the other to push back her sweaty tresses. "Yeah," Jesse said with a sideway glance towards his house, "I guess I'll go too."

"Bye Jess. See ya tomorrow?" Leslie asked shyly, and Jesse blushed, but—fortunately for him—it was hidden by his already flushed cheeks.

"Bye Leslie!" Jesse called to her, before turning and running to his house, grabbing his backpack on the way home. He glanced at his watch, and cringed. _6:14. _He was so dead.

Jesse skidded to a halt in front of his house, and took a deep breath seeing his dad's truck in the driveway. For some reason, everything looked much more menacing than usual.

He dropped his backpack by the front door, and slipped off his "new" sneakers.

Walking inside the kitchen, he was met with absolute silence, and five pairs of eyes staring at him. Joyce Ann of course was playing with her mashed carrots, and giggling whenever some dropped onto her high chair table.

At that moment, Joyce Ann was his favorite person in the world.

"And where have you been, Jess?" his mom asked, her eyes narrowed on him. Jesse gulped slightly; dropping his backpack and sneakers near the door probably hadn't been a good idea. At least with the sneakers on he could've made a run for it.

"Erm, I was out running," he muttered, internally hoping that May Belle would keep her mouth shut.

No such luck.

"You went running with Leslie, Jess? Was it fun?" she asked excitedly, popping up in her chair to look at him.

"Who's Leslie?" Ellie asked her voice tinged with curiosity. Jesse thought it odd that Ellie seemed to be studying him rather intensely, and her brown eyes combined with the disapproving look on his mother's face—made him want to squirm. He thought back and remembered when Ellie had been a bigger brat than Brenda. It hit him that his sister had been rather mellow these last couple of weeks. Something had changed and Jesse wanted to know what.

At least he did until Brenda answered Ellie's question, "Probably his freak girlfriend."

"Don't call her a freak, Brenda," Jesse snapped in sudden defense, and her eyes widened slightly.

"So she is your girlfriend," Brenda laughed. The sound of it practically made Jesse's skin crawl, and he almost felt slighted by the fact that he couldn't stand his own sister's laughter, "Have you guys played _doctor_, yet?"

Jesse turned crimson with embarrassment. "She is _not_ my girlfriend." Brenda opened her mouth to respond—something nasty by the way her eyes burned with malicious anxiety—but Jesse's mom got there first.

"Brenda, cut out the nonsense," she snapped, and then barked at Jesse, "And you sit down this instant, young man."

Jesse sat down in his usual spot next to Brenda, and felt awfully uncomfortable. His clothes were damp from sweating so much and he knew he didn't smell very good.

Brenda's disgusted look confirmed it.

"You know that you're supposed to be home at six o'clock on school nights, Jesse. The only way out of it is if you call and inform us—yes that includes giving a good reason as to why you'll be late—before you come home after curfew," Mary Aarons said sternly, and Jesse stared at the table.

"I'm sorry mom, but we were running and we lost track of time. I'm sure if you call Leslie's parents they'll tell you the same thing. It's not like I deliberately came home late," Jesse said, and his mother seemed to soften.

"I'll let you off this time, since you haven't done it before, but if it happens again, I won't be so nice," she told him, and Jesse nodded.

"Now go take a shower, before you eat. I think you'll ruin our appetites if you join us smelling like you do," she told him, chuckling softly. Jesse grinned, and stood up to leave the room. His eyes met his father's but once again they were unreadable, so he turned and headed upstairs. Curiously he sniffed himself, and groaned under his breath.

Geez, he smelt _really_ bad.

* * *

_Thanks for taking the time to read! Leave me a review!_

_-TellNoOne_


	6. Chapter 6

_Disclaimer: On First Chapter.**

* * *

**_

**Till' I Collapse**

_**Part One: Discovering Leslie Burke**_

_**Chapter Six**_

(Please read and review)

_**

* * *

**_

August 14, 2007(Thursday)

_**Cora Perry Neighborhood**_

_**The Aarons' Residence**_

_**6:45AM**_

The next morning, Jesse rushed through his early morning run, his chores, and his shower, before hurrying downstairs to eat breakfast. Dropping his strangely full backpack on the ground next to his chair, Jesse ate quickly, stuffing his mouth full of eggs, taking a large bite of bacon, and devouring his pancakes. He was done in less than five minutes, and he washed it all down with a glass of orange juice.

Standing he saw his mother staring at him, looking vaguely amused, and his sisters looked disgusted. "What was that, Jess?" Ellie asked, and Brenda smirked.

"Yeah, just because we live on farm land doesn't mean you can turn into a pig, Jesse." Brenda shot at Jess, and her mother glared.

"Brenda, _that's enough_," and from there it descended into another argument on a woman's prerogative and propriety.

Jesse walked away before he heard too much; kissing Joyce Ann on the top of her head on the way out. As he hurried to the bus stop, Jesse saw Leslie standing near the road with a smile on her face.

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_**August 15, 2007(Friday)**_

_**Lark Creek Elementary School**_

_**Music Class**_

_**11:27 AM**_

The sounds of a guitar playing echoed throughout the room as Ms. Edmunds warmed up. Her students practically ran over each other to get to the instrument cart and grab instruments of their choosing. Leslie nudged Jesse with her foot as he walked past her to get to the cart.

Jesse tossed her a note and a smile before he headed to the front of the room. As he grabbed the cloth covered drum, Jesse heard Leslie's startled laughter and he glanced over at her as he sat back down in his seat.

She grinned at him and pointed to the note saying, "Nice Jess; _real nice_."

He winked and turned back around looking smug. He had given her a note that had a hand-drawn picture of Ms. Edmunds on it, and at the bottom he wrote, '_Turns out you were right after all, considering she's now dating my math teacher._' And he'd signed it Question Mark.

Jesse saw Leslie neatly place the picture into the inside lining of her binder, and he turned back around as Ms. Edmunds began singing, "_Fifty-seven Chevy; she's low, sleek and black; someday I'll put her on the interstate and never look back. Someday I'm finally gonna let go. I know there's a better way. I wanna know what's over that rainbow. I'm gonna get outta here someday…"_

Leslie and Jesse traded smiling looks during the whole song.

----

_**August 15, 2007(Friday)**_

_**Lark Creek Elementary School**_

_**Playground**_

_**12:10 PM**_

Jesse and Leslie ate their lunch, but Jesse removed his sweatshirt before he leaned back against the tree.

Leslie removed her jacket too, and then swung her legs across Jesse's, before leaning against the trunk of the tree. "We should do some renovating," she said, before a large gust of wind blew across the two, making Leslie shiver slightly and she moved reflexively closer to Jess, who was warm.

"What do you mean?" he inquired as he turned his head to look at her, and finally noticed her close proximity. He didn't mind it, but it made his stomach jump and he felt funny.

"The tree house, Jess," she said, "My dad has some excess lumber and extra paint that we won't be using."

"Why aren't they using it?"

"Mom didn't like it, so they put it out back," Leslie answered distractedly, "We should have some extra canvas and some tools outback as well." Leslie looked up at Jesse, "When do you think we should work on it?"

Jesse thought for a moment. "This weekend should be good, I think; At least, if that's okay with you?"

"That's fine, Jess. We'll just have to finish before Sunday. I have to go into town with my parents that morning," Leslie replied, before she sat up suddenly. "Oh! I finally got the digital camera I've been asking my parents for."

Jesse was stunned, "Aren't those like a hundred bucks a piece?"

Leslie nodded, "Most are, but I think mine was about twice as much judging by the amount of work I had to do for it." She dug through her satchel and pulled out a thin, but square case that was covered in neon writing and smiley face stickers.

"Nice camera case, Les." Jesse commented, and Leslie beamed.

"It took me forever to color it and stuff. I love it now, before it was just a plain metallic blue color."

Jesse laughed as she scooted back beside him, and turned on the camera. Almost immediately, a funny video of Leslie doing weird poses in front of the camera appeared, and Jesse laughed at the one where Leslie had bunny ears and was nibbling on a carrot. Jesse could hear her singing in the background, "I got my camera! I got my camera!" Then the video cut off, and went to the regular picture screen.

Jesse was laughing so hard, his eyes were tearing, and Leslie was giggling like a maniac. She buried her head in his shoulder for a moment, before sitting up and quickly snapping a picture of the two of them.

They spent the rest of lunch taking pictures, but Leslie loved the last one of Jesse she took. He was staring at the crowd of kids rushing towards their classroom as soon as the bell rang, and his hands were in his jeans pockets.

His hair was messy, but not too messy, and Leslie admired the open expression on his face. It was the perfect picture, and it was so going on her wall.

As soon as she'd put the camera away; picked up their trash, and got their stuff together, they quickly realized they were the last ones out on the playground. With wide eyes they glanced at each other, and said, "Oh crap!" Jess grabbed Leslie's shoes, and she grabbed her satchel, before racing towards the school with Leslie laughing as they ran.

Both of them reached their separate classes—Leslie had history, and Jesse had math—with only seconds to spare. As he sat down in his seat, Jesse belatedly realized that he was still holding Leslie's shoes, and he burst out laughing, startling those around him including his teacher.

"Mr. Aarons, is there a problem?" The teacher—Mr. Sampson—asked sternly, and Jesse couldn't help the snort that escaped him.

"It's not a problem for me personally sir but would it be possible for me to go give Leslie Burke her shoes back?"

----

_**August 15, 2007(Friday)**_

_**Cora Perry Neighborhood**_

_**3:07PM**_

Jesse had been lucky that it was a Friday afternoon, because his math teacher was in a good mood. Mr. Sampson seemed to believe wholeheartedly in the phrase, "TGIF!" and he had laughed at Jesse's question. Jesse had been told no, so Leslie had to sit through her history class with no shoes.

Jesse—even though he was mostly over his irrational fear of Scott and Gary—was still wary about doing anything else to cross them. So despite seeing Ms. Edmunds struggling with her stuff, Jess walked past them and towards the buses.

Leslie elbowed him as soon as he plopped down into the seat in front of her before she took her shoes back. Leslie was glowering at him as he felt around in his backpack; searching for his sketchbook while she put on her shoes.

"Do you have any idea how disgusting it is to walk around with no shoes on, Jess?" she huffed as she crossed her arms. Jesse wanted to laugh at the sour look on her face, but he resisted considering that she was already a bit ticked off.

"And I got a hole in my rainbow striped socks. A _hole_ Jesse!" she exploded, her fists waving around dramatically. She almost clocked him on the head—by accident Jesse hoped, but he couldn't tell at the moment. "Now I have to go buy a whole other pair."

"Well, maybe we can go into town this weekend?" Jesse offered as he fiddled with his sketchbook, "I mean whenever we're done with _you-know-what_."

That statement got Leslie's attention almost instantly. "Done with it? Jesse, we haven't even made plans as to what we were really gonna do," she said, "Unless you've been super sneaky and did something without me."

Jesse cocked an eyebrow at her and shook his head. "Ri-ight Les; I suddenly have the power to transport myself to our place and fix something while supposedly sitting in math class."

Leslie's sheepish look answered his sarcasm, and Jesse laughed slightly. "Uh oh; I think Leslie Burke has finally caught…" Jesse paused in mock- suspense as he leaned over the seat. The serious expression on his face took Leslie off guard, especially when he whispered, "…the _Dumb_."

"_Hey!"_

Laughing, Jesse dodged her small fist as it headed towards his face, and he fought off her attacks as she kneeled on her seat to get more leverage. Leslie swatted at him; using elbows and fists. Jess caught her hand and laced their fingers together as she tried to push him backwards by forcing her weight over the seat.

Leslie still tried to hit him using their connected hands, but Jesse was much stronger than her, and managed to deflect each attempt. Their play fight continued until Leslie's knee slipped off the edge of her seat, and she fell forward into the small space between the seats.

Jesse—taken aback by the sudden loss—lost his own balance from where he was lying in the crevice between the two bus seats and fell sideways into the empty space. Surprised looks graced both their faces as Jesse and Leslie stared at each other from the floor of the bus. It only took a few seconds before Leslie erupted in giggles, and Jesse's laughter followed her.

"Oh my guppies Jess," she said, her sentence being periodically interrupted by giggles. Jesse was too busy laughing to speak as he wiggled and moved himself back up to his seat. Leaning over the back of his seat, Jesse helped Leslie up off the floor; her body still shaking with rapid-fire giggles. Her hair was askew and there were patches of dust and dirt all over her jeans and shirt. Leslie's face was red and her eyes were sparkling. A tummy-rumbling feeling made him feel weird as she finally calmed herself down enough to breathe.

"So what did you do?" she asked, finally getting back to the real subject, and Jesse shot her a half-hearted grin as he handed over the sketchbook. He flushed at the amazed look on Leslie's face as she glanced over the awfully detailed drawing of their castle. Leslie snapped the book closed before she quickly clambered her way over the seat and next to Jesse.

He stared at her in surprised amusement. "Couldn't you have walked?"

Leslie shook her head. "Where's the fun in that?"

Jesse grinned, before Leslie launched into a discussion about what they would need to get to make all the renovations work. Fifteen minutes later, when the bus was nearing their stop, Leslie relaxed. "It's a good thing your dad taught you all that stuff about hardware, huh?"

Jesse laughed a little. "My dad didn't teach me, Leslie," he told her, "My mom did."

Leslie's searching look made him blush and he turned his head away from her. Jesse felt grateful he had a quick getaway as the bus came to a stop near Cora Perry. He grabbed his backpack and hustled off the bus, not waiting for Leslie until he reached the first row of trees. He was a little surprised when May Belle and two of her friends got off the bus behind him, and Leslie came next. Jesse waved May Belle—along with her two friends—away and Leslie took long strides to catch up to him.

"_Jesse!"_ she called and he paused mid-step. Jesse was afraid to look back at her, because he didn't want to face her pity, but when he did; he was awfully surprised to find anger in her expression.

"Les, what…" Jesse started, but he was caught off guard when Leslie's fist pounded into his arm, "_Ouch!"_

He yelped as Leslie swung at him again, but Jesse caught her hand. She pushed him away from her and stormed off towards her house. Jesse flabbergasted and confused followed after her; and caught her arm to stop her. "Leslie, what's wrong?"

"You are so—so…ugh…" Jesse couldn't believe that Leslie Burke—queen of comebacks—was speechless because of something he'd done. "I can't believe you—you dum-dum," she fumed as she tried to shake off his grip, but Jess held tight.

He was taken aback by the insult, but he also wanted to know what was wrong and why she was mad. "What did I do?"

"Damn it, Jesse!" Leslie cursing almost made him gape like a fish, but he pushed his shock away because she was still ranting, "You can't just say something like that and then run away from me. I don't care who taught you the process of reinforcing floors or even how to put bread in a toaster, but I am your friend, and I'd appreciate it if you didn't just walk away from me without any kind of explanation."

Jesse blinked. He hadn't thought about how avoiding the conversation would affect Leslie, and he briefly wondered if she was more hurt than angry. "I'm sorry, Leslie," he told her feeling like a pinhead, and Leslie deflated.

"It's okay Jess," she said, "Now let's go get that equipment." Jesse grinned as they dropped their backpacks on the ground. Both of them snuck around to Leslie's house to get supplies that they needed. Leslie took a sled type thing on which they stacked lumber, paint cans and brushes; tools; and excess canvas, before they spent the next hour hauling it the four and a half miles to their magical kingdom.

Jesse and Leslie were dismayed to realize that they needed to find a different way to cross the creek with their things, and the two eventually devised a plan—meaning they found a way to cross without having to fly.

The two trekked the rest of the way to their kingdom; both rather disheartened by the amount of work they still needed to do, but because it was Friday, the two could stay out until nine o'clock. Jesse and Leslie knew that it got dark at about seven thirty so they only had about three hours of daylight left.

On that thought they got started. Jess and Leslie cleaned out the tree house; using brooms to clean up the leaves. Leslie knocked out the rotting window frames and started measuring those; at the same time she made plans to make each of them wider and larger.

Taking her measurements, Leslie cut out new window treatments, and used a thick plastic-like sheet to fill in the holes. Jesse climbed up into the tree house, and began to fix the flooring first as it was most important. He tore up loose boards and the rotting wood, before jumping down to get the measuring tape. He measured as Leslie finished up the windows, and he began to cut wood.

Replacing the floor was hard, grueling work, because he had to cut wood, carry it up, nail it down, and then repeat the process, but three hours later, the rotting wood floor had been replaced by shiny new oak wood boards, and it looked really good. He reinforced the floor with some sheets of steel, and Leslie helped him.

They carefully used their remaining time to place everything inside the tree house and sat down to drink some water. Leslie's shirt was soaked with sweat, and Jesse was drenched; even his jeans were heavier than usual.

"What do you think so far?" Leslie asked curiously as Jess took a large gulp of water; he'd drunk almost half in one gulp. Leslie dug around in her satchel and tossed Jesse a granola bar as they sat still and watched the sun begin to go down.

"I think it'll take us along time if we only work three hours a day, but if we come here early tomorrow, I think that we could get it done before nightfall." Jesse mused as he noisily opened his snack.

"We did well today, Jess," Leslie spoke, admiring the new floor. She could already see the improvement.

Jesse looked around and nodded. "We should start heading home now. Our parents will be worried if they don't at least see us today."

Leslie grinned. "Race you back?"

"Absolutely not!" Jesse exclaimed, "You would win hands down. I'm so sweaty that my jeans weigh more than I do."

Leslie cracked up, "Okay, Jess, but we should go."

They stood up and hurried out of the forest, and by the time they reached the clearing both were exhausted again. Jesse was even wincing as he felt his legs ache. "Well, this sucks." he bemoaned as he rubbed his shoulders.

Leslie agreed silently as they walked slowly back home. She didn't even want to think about the four miles they had to go. "So, Jesse what's your favorite color?" Leslie asked, and Jesse started slightly.

"Erm, dark blue," he said, and Leslie smiled,

"I love metallic green."

"You certainly like bright colors, Les," Jessie said, and Leslie laughed.

"The brighter the nature of something; the more mysterious that something can be," Leslie said knowingly, and Jesse's brow furrowed.

"What?" he asked and Leslie laughed again.

"People are often so distracted by the brightness on the outside of something—especially when it's neon—that they never really see what's going on inside," she explained quietly, her head turned up to the stars.

"You know, when you talk like that you sound much older than a twelve year old, Leslie," Jess told her, and Leslie looked at him.

"It's more of the fact that I'm not the stereotypical clueless twelve-year old that is oblivious to their surroundings," Leslie replied, and Jesse smirked.

"Of course you are," he said mockingly, "I think you just use really big words because you heard them somewhere else. You know what they say, Les. Big words hide a small mind."

Leslie swatted at him indignantly, and Jesse dodged. The two spent the next hour walking home slowly, and talking about anything and everything that came to mind. It was the most fun Jess had had in a long time.

Jesse made it home with minutes to spare and he hobbled inside; stripping off his shirt along the way. Brenda gagged at the stench while Ellie goggled at the amount of sweat he had on him.

"What the hell have you been doing, Jesse?" Ellie asked, and Jess smirked as his mom chided her about appropriate language.

"Leslie and I went running again. It was a good workout." he told them as he headed towards the stairs. Jesse's mom smiled at him.

"It sure looks that way, Jess."

Jesse kissed his mother on the cheek for the first time in years, before he walked upstairs to the shower, leaving his mom flabbergasted, but happy and his sisters in shock.

* * *

_Thanks for reading! Please leave me a review._

_-TellNoOne_


	7. Chapter 7

_Disclaimer: On First Chapter._

* * *

**Till' I Collapse**

**Part One: Discovering Leslie Burke**

**Chapter Seven**

(Please leave me a review)

**_

* * *

_**

August 16, 2007(Saturday)

_**Cora Perry Neighborhood**_

_**The Aarons' Residence**_

The next day, Jesse woke up to the sound of rocks hitting his window pane. He climbed out of bed and peered out of the blinds and was surprised to see Leslie there. Quickly, but quietly he opened the window and stuck his head outside.

"What are you doing here, Les?" he asked, and Leslie smiled up at him. She thought he looked adorable in his t-shirt and bedraggled hair. "Come on, there's a lot of work to do, and I got some food and stuff so we can stay out all day."

"Argh, what time is it?" he asked, seemingly a bit more awake, and Leslie glanced at her watch.

"It's five thirty," she replied, and Jesse's eyes popped open wide.

"Geez Louise Les, you aren't playing around are you?" In response Leslie, shook her head. "Alright, I'll be down in a few minutes." He was about to close the window, but Leslie called up to him again.

"What?"

"Don't get breakfast!"

"Why not?"

"Because I've got us fresh blueberry muffins and individual pints of orange juice for us to share," she said grinning, and Jesse nodded. He closed the window, before showering quickly, brushing his hair and teeth, then he wrote a quick note to his parents after getting dressed.

He snuck out of the house silently, and met Leslie on the pathway. She was dragging a cooler behind her and together the two set off for a long day. After twenty minutes, they got there, and both ate breakfast; each chattering loudly and laughing when either one said something funny.

When they'd finished the two of them got to work; Leslie measured the walls, and began tearing out wood while Jess began making frames and stripping canvas. They switched when Leslie finished measuring the walls, and Jessie sawed and cut wood as Leslie wet the canvas and set them out to dry.

When that was done, Leslie cut down the old rope ladder, and made another one; she also took down the old wooden planks that were used as stairs, and she made new ones.

By noon, Jesse had finished the exterior walls, but then he set to work on the interior after they ate lunch. Leslie had brought turkey and Swiss cheese sandwiches, along with some fresh vegetables and fruit. They had cold water, and cookies for a snack—Leslie's indulgence, she loved cookies. By four o'clock Jesse had finished the walls, and Leslie had completed making furniture, like chairs, and bookshelves; she'd even put in the new "windows".

They worked together to put everything in place, and then they ran home, and pilfered some knick-knacks and other things they wanted to put inside. By eight that night, both Jess and Leslie were worn out, but they were extremely proud. Their fortress was complete.

They walked home together in a comfortable silence, but it was broken by the sound of an argument going on inside Jesse's house. They stopped abruptly, and Jesse knew immediately who it was.

Brenda and his mom had been at each other's throats for weeks now, and Jesse knew that something had probably happened while he was gone. Jess could feel Leslie's stare burn into the side of his head, but he prayed that she didn't say anything.

And she didn't.

Leslie moved closer to Jesse and he felt her grab his hand. The feeling of it sent warm tingles up and down his spine as they walked towards his front door. Leslie held Jesse's hand the rest of the way to his house, and they stopped a few feet from the door. Leslie clearly heard the screaming, and Jesse himself was acutely aware of the fact that Leslie could hear it all, but again she didn't speak.

He was thankful for it.

Leslie squeezed his hand reassuringly, and Jess gave her a weak smile as he met her eyes. No words were spoken, but he clearly saw in her eyes the message she wanted him to see.

'_If you need me, I'll be there.' _

Jesse was even more thankful, because as he watched Leslie walk away, he was glad to know that she would be there.

----

_**August 18, 2007(Monday)**_

_**Lark Creek Elementary **_

_**School Bus**_

Monday was normal except for the fact that Leslie was outfitted in somewhat tame attire. She was wearing a red sleeved and white mid-sectioned baseball tee with neon bracelets and bright purple skinny jeans. Her high tops were rainbow colored and her hair was streaked with various colors.

When asked why she decided on that outfit, Leslie winked at Jesse and said, "Just so you know that I do actually like baseball tees too."

After that the day was good, Jess and Leslie went to class; ate lunch together, and did funny impressions of their known enemies by the big oak tree. They were almost late to class again, but this time Leslie remembered to get her shoes back from Jess before they went inside. On the bus was when things got interesting.

Jess had just sat down next to Leslie, when Janice Avery passed him, and tripped.

She immediately sat up, and yelled, "Jess Aarons tripped me!" Jess stared at her incredulously, and he scoffed in outrage as the bus driver told him to get off the bus and hike it home.

"I didn't do anything!" he exclaimed.

"He just sat down, sir. How was he supposed to trip her?" Leslie demanded, her tone angry, but the driver wouldn't hear it. Jesse reluctantly stood up, and walked off the bus. Leslie was about to follow him, but Jess told her to stay.

"It's not worth letting the trash stay inside without some air refresher to cover the stink," he said causing Janice to huff indignantly, and Leslie snorted. He walked off with his dignity, and Leslie couldn't have been more proud.

----

_**August 18, 2007(Monday)**_

_**Cora Perry Neighborhood**_

_**The Aarons' Residence**_

Jesse was fuming as he walked up to his drive way, until he saw Leslie sitting on the log doing math homework. He peered closer at her and noticed she was covered in red stuff. He sat down beside her, and she looked up.

"What happened to you?" he asked.

"Janice Avery is a very talented person. She can shoot ketchup packets over four rows of seats," Leslie answered in amazement, and Jesse laughed.

"_Geez…"_

"Can I wash up at your house?" she asked, closing her binder and stuffing it into her backpack. "If my mom sees this she'll be all over the principle and everybody, and then my life will officially be over," she stated dramatically, causing Jess to laugh at her antics.

"Yeah sure," he told her standing up, "You can use the downstairs bathroom."

They chatted as they walked the short way to Jesse's house, and Jess wasn't surprised when they walked past his oblivious sisters. He showed Leslie the bathroom, and sat down on the stairs to wait for her.

A few minutes later, Jess heard the water turn off in the restroom, and Leslie walked out smiling at him.

He noticed that her hair was wet along with the neckline of her baseball tee. Jesse also saw that her rainbow highlights had washed out, and Leslie smelled strongly of strawberries. He took her hand and was about to lead her from the room when his mom spotted them.

"Oh, hello," she said, a nervous look on her face.

Jesse's eyes widened slightly and he turned around forgetting that he was holding Leslie's hand. "Erm, hi mom; this is Leslie," he stammered slightly, and everyone's attention was suddenly on them.

"Hi Leslie," Mary Aarons greeted softly, and Leslie smiled politely.

"Hello Mrs. Aarons," she replied.

"How do you and your parents like Lark Creek so far?" his mom asked, and Leslie beamed.

"I love it here, ma'Am." she responded enthusiastically, and his mom nodded.

"We have to go," Jesse said and he began pulling Leslie away.

"It was nice meeting you, Mrs. Aarons!" Leslie called out as she was pulled out the door.

"It was nice meeting you too, Leslie!"

"See ya later, mom!" Jesse called behind him.

"Not too late, Jess. Be home by six."

The door clicked closed behind them and Leslie grinned at Jess. "Your mom seems nice," she said, and Jesse laughed.

"She is, until you don't do what she asks," Jesse told her straight-faced, "After that she turns into a _lean mean mommy butt-kicking machine_."

Leslie burst out laughing at this, and the two took off running towards their magical kingdom.

----

_**August 18, 2007(Monday)**_

_**Cora Perry Neighborhood**_

_**The Woods **_

"Okay so I know your parents are authors, but what do they write about?"

"Fiction, usually, but my dad seems to have a talent for integrating reality into a make-believe world, hence his obsession with Teddy Roosevelt. He was one of my favorite presidents too," Leslie explained as Jesse bit into his apple.

"Well, that explains you," Jess replied, and Leslie raised an eyebrow at him.

"What does that mean?"

"I mean you like to make things up, and that's what your parents do for a living," Jesse said hesitantly, especially when he saw the slightly affronted look on her face.

"Well, do you know a lot about hardware?"

"Erm, no," Jesse answered, "but what does that have to do with anything?"

"Your dad works at a hardware store," Leslie said bluntly, and Jesse rolled his eyes in exasperation.

"_Okay_…" he groaned.

"All I'm saying is; you are who you are, not your parents," Leslie told him and he bit into his apple, not paying her any attention.

"Well, if your parents work at your house, you must get to hang out with them a lot," Jesse mused staring at Leslie, who paused momentarily.

"Not really, I…" Leslie was cut off by a large pinecone whacking her upside the head. "_Ow_!" she winced and her cookie fell out of her hand as she grabbed at her forehead.

Jesse dropped his apple and grabbed the pinecone. "_It's a grenade_!" he yelled, and Leslie looked at him dubiously,

"There are no grenades here!" Jess threw it, and Leslie noticed the numerous squirrels above their heads.

"It's a sqroager!" she yelled, "the sneaky footed soldiers of the Dark Master. They're attacking."

"We need ammo!" Jess yelled, and Leslie pointed upwards.

"See them?!"

"Yeah," Jess replied, and Leslie looked momentarily stunned.

"Really?"

"Yeah," Jess said seriously, right before the ugly animal attacked. Jess yelled as he was knocked onto his back. He fought it off and sat up; calling for Leslie, but that was when he noticed the silence, and his friend's conspicuous absence.

"_Leslie!"_

"I'm up here Jess!" she yelled from the tree top, and he ran over. "Come on, you can see the whole kingdom from here." Jesse climbed the tree, and when he sat next to Leslie all he saw was the normal drab hills.

Leslie noticed the confused look on his face and she smiled, before turning and taking his face in her hands. "Close your eyes Jess, but keep your mind _wide open_," she whispered to him.

Jesse blushed furiously at Leslie holding his face, but he did as she asked, and was astounded at the change. Grand mountain ranges and crisp blue rivers appeared before his eyes. Even the normal trees looked magnificent. "Wow!" Jesse exclaimed, "What do we call this place?"

Leslie let go of Jesse and she studied the area, her brow furrowed in thought, before her face lit up with excitement. "Terabithia," she said proudly, and Jesse smiled at her, before he noticed something wrong.

Leslie's blond hair had a slowly growing circle of red near her temple, and Jess inhaled sharply, "Leslie, you're bleeding."

"I am?" she asked surprised, before her fingers swiped across the tender area. "Oh, I guess I am."

"Come on; let's go take care of that," Jesse muttered, "We don't want it to get infected."

Leslie stole one last glance at Terabithia and smiled, before climbing down the tree after Jesse. The two walked slowly back to Jesse's house; he had a hand over the still bleeding wound, and Leslie was beginning to look a little paler than normal.

He carefully, but quickly led her into his house, and Jesse ignored his gaping family so he could set Leslie down on a chair. "What happened to her, Jess?" his mom exclaimed when Jesse pulled his hand away from Leslie's wound. It was soaked in blood, but he didn't mind.

"She got hit in the head with a pine cone," he answered her distractedly, before running from the room to get some bandages, warm water, alcohol, and a towel. He came back quickly, and slowly washed the blood out of her hair; cleaning the wound in the process.

Jess softly dabbed alcohol on the wound, and Leslie flinched away from it hissing. "Geez Louise Jesse, any more alcohol and they'll arrest me for being underage and under the influence!"

Jesse couldn't stop the laugh that bubbled inside him, "Les, you're being a baby."

"I am not! It_ hurts_!" she retorted indignantly, and Jesse grinned at her.

"What? Are you sure that you're the tomboyish city girl that loves gymnastics? You can't take _a little pain_, Leslie?" Jesse asked teasingly, before wincing as Leslie kicked him after he'd put more alcohol on the cut.

"What was that for, Les?" Jesse asked rubbing his leg as it throbbed where Leslie's shoe had connected with his shin.

His friend looked smug. "What country boy? You can't handle _a little pain?"_ she mocked him in a high falsetto voice, and he glared at her.

"Whatever, Les," he muttered, before bandaging the cut as best he could. Leslie fidgeted a little, but seemed relieved when he was done. "There now you can go home and whine about it."

He capped the alcohol and tossed the band-aid wrapper and used cotton ball into the trashcan. Leslie bit her lip anxiously, and Jesse was surprised when she grabbed his hand, preventing him from walking away.

"_What now_?"

"Look Jesse Aarons, if you can't take it, then don't give it," she began firmly, and Jesse stared as she continued, "I'm sorry for being rude, but it really did hurt. _So there_."

Jesse shrugged nonchalantly, not knowing what to say, but Leslie took matters in her own hands when she entwined their fingers together and pulled him closer. "Please don't be mad at me, Jess," she pleaded, and Jesse smiled slightly.

"I'm not, Leslie, but you should really be getting home," he said, "It's almost seven."

"_What?"_ Leslie gaped, and then she squeezed Jesse's hand, "Now I really am gonna die," she finished, making Jesse laugh.

"I doubt that your parents would kill a girl like you because you're late," Jesse said absentmindedly, and he flushed when he noticed the beaming smile on Leslie's face.

Leslie squeezed his hand again, and whispered, "Thanks Jesse." Before she let go of his hand and walked towards the door.

"Thanks for what, Leslie?" he asked bewildered, and she grinned at him over her shoulder.

"For _everything_!" she called out as she ran out of the door, the screen slamming shut after her. Jesse stared, wondering what she meant by that.

"Ahem," Someone clearing their throat had Jesse tensing, and he was sucked back into reality quickly. Turning he saw what he had been dreading; his family was looking at him like he'd sprouted wings and grew cat ears, but his mother had this knowing look on her face. He absently wondered what she thought she knew.

"What happened to your friend, Jess?" his mom asked, and he replied, "Oh, she got hit quite hard with a pine cone. Those squirrels seemed to be of the_ angry_ sort."

Ellie snorted lightly, and Jesse glanced at her surprised, but she looked away from him.

"Is she going to be alright, Jess?" she asked, and he nodded.

"I think she'll be just fine," Jesse said before walking upstairs to go shower. It had certainly been an interesting day.

* * *

_Not my best work, but this week was insane. I promise next week's will be better._

_-TellNoOne_


	8. Chapter 8

_Disclaimer: On First Chapter._**

* * *

**

**Till' I Collapse**

**Part One: Discovering Leslie Burke**

**Chapter Eight**

(Please read and review)

_**

* * *

**_

_**August 19, 2007(Tuesday)**_

_**1301 Cora Perry Lane**_

_**The Aarons' Residence**_

"_Happy Birthday, Jesse!"_ The yell—considering it was his whole family outside his room divider—sent Jesse into slight shock as his head snapped open; possibly putting a crick in the birthday boy's neck.

He—slightly panicked by the fact that he had been drawing pictures of Terabithian creatures—was trying to cover the drawings quickly so no one could see them. Jess ended up tossing his pillow over the sketches and sitting up.

He smiled brightly as they sang him happy birthday, and he blew out his candles after thinking of his wish. _I hope that my dad will want to spend time with me today._

He opened his present downstairs in the den, and was actually overjoyed with the toy, but his dad didn't appreciate the car falling off the track every time. "What is this cheap junk?"

Jesse protested, "Its not cheap junk, dad. I love it! I just haven't gotten the hang of it, yet."

His dad picked up the toy anyway, before mumbling about loving something that doesn't work. May Belle hurried inside looking upset, "Daddy, something happened in the green house!"

Jesse could tell his father was angry as he muttered under his breath about animals eating at their lively hood; just like all those bankers and lawyer people in big cities. Jesse shook his head.

"What are you going to do if you catch it?"

"I'm going to get rid of it," The man grumbled as he fixed a crate of vegetables.

"You're going to kill it?" Jesse asked half-heartedly, and his father nodded.

"I'm going to have too."

Jesse really didn't think his dad needed to go that far, but he wasn't going to start an argument. "Do you need help with anything else?" he asked hopefully, but he was disappointed with his dad's answer.

"No, you go on and do your homework. I'll finish this."

----

_**August 20, 2007(Wednesday)**_

_**Lark Creek Elementary**_

_**School Bus**_

"I heard it was your birthday yesterday," Leslie said quietly, and Jesse's head snapped up, before he glanced back at her.

"Really? Who told you?" he asked suspiciously, and Leslie nodded her head in May Belle's direction. Jess frowned.

"My question is why didn't _you _tell me, Jesse?" Leslie asked him, her voice tinged with hurt and Jess winced.

"It's not that important," he started, "I didn't mean to hurt your feelings Leslie, but I didn't want you to make a big deal out of it."

Leslie's right hand cuffed him upside the head. "Jesse Aarons, don't you ever say anything that stupid again!" she hissed, "Of course, I'm going to make a big deal of it! _You're my best friend_."

Jesse froze in shock, and Leslie tensed. By the look on her face she obviously hadn't meant to say that out loud. "I-I'm your best friend, Les?" he asked dubiously feeling his heart pounding in his chest for some inexplicable reason.

Leslie blushed and she nodded softly. "Under the seat," she whispered, biting her lip anxiously, and Jesse turned around.

He picked up a wooden box, and opened it. Inside was an array of paints, and Jesse stared gob smacked. "Leslie, this is too much." he whispered, his eyes wide.

Leslie shook her head, "Why does it matter what you think is too much, Jesse? Its' a gift that I'm freely giving to you, and it's not too much for my _best friend_."

Jesse continued to stare at the case and Leslie sighed, "If you'd like I can take it back and get the cheaper one."

"_No!"_ The protest came quite loud, and Jesse snapped the case shut, before he turned around to look at her. Leslie grinned at him.

"Thanks, Les," he told sincerely, "Thanks a lot."

Jesse's eyes met Leslie's and the two stared at each other for a long moment, before it was broken by May Belle singing, "_Jess and Leslie sitting in a tree! K-I-S-S-I-N-G…" _

That was as far as she got, before a blushing Leslie covered May Belle's mouth with her hand, and Jesse laughed awkwardly, his cheeks red.

----

_**August 20, 2007(Wednesday)**_

_**Lark Creek Elementary**_

_**Playground**_

"So Jesse how old are you now?" Leslie asked as she chewed on some grapes. Jesse swallowed his bite of apple.

"I just turned twelve," he said bemusedly, and Leslie smirked.

"That means I'm older than you by four months because my birthday is April 19. I just turned twelve this year too," she told him—her tone smug—and he threw a piece of his apple at her.

"Just another thing you whoop me at," he admitted ruefully, before growling at her in mock-indignation, "You're such a _cheat-o_."

Leslie laughed.

----

_**August 20, 2007(Wednesday)**_

_**Lark Creek Elementary**_

_**Bus Lot**_

Leslie watched Jesse pause as he saw the music teacher, Ms. Edmunds struggling to carry her things. "You know Jesse; the boy who can stand up to a sqroager shouldn't be afraid of a _Ho-ho_ like Hoager," Leslie told him quietly, and Jesse glanced at her.

Leslie's blonde hair sparkled in the streaming sunlight that was definitely unusual for this time of year, and her bottle green eyes were hooded by the dark shadows of her eyelashes. Jesse was certain that she looked different than normal. And he finally realized that he and Leslie were no longer the same height. Instead he was staring _down_ at her rather than meeting her eyes with a simple glance. He didn't know why it bothered him slightly, but it also exhilarated him to no end.

It was the first time that Jesse realized he had gotten taller than Leslie, and he smiled. It felt good to beat her at something. Peering at Ms. Edmund's struggling form, and then glancing back at Leslie; Jesse felt like a pinhead for the thousandth time that month. It didn't matter that he was taller than Leslie. She was his best friend, who was rather talented at everything she did, and though he knew it to be human nature to be jealous of such fortune; Jesse didn't want to be and he knew that he had no cause too.

Surprising his blonde friend, Jesse nudged her cheek with his shoulder and gave her a smile which she returned brightly. Jess' eyes wandered in the direction of Scott Hoager, and he glared at the boy. Scott visibly faltered at the sudden confidence Jesse sported, and Jesse couldn't keep the immediate swelling of pride contained within his chest.

Of course, Leslie took care of that with a swift but hearty punch to his stomach. He glanced down at her shocked and slightly hurt, and was taken aback by the stern frown on her face. "Sorry, Les," he told her, and she smiled again.

"No problem, Jess. I just don't want my best friend to have a fathead," she said—her tone amused but honest. Jesse felt like laughing when she continued, "But just so you know that if you ever do let your head inflate to the size of Scott Hoager's, I'll be ready to jab you with safety pin."

She grinned up at him, and reached up to ruffle his hair fondly. Jess shot her an evil look to which she gave him a slight push. Jesse nodded at her, slinging his backpack firmly over one shoulder and walking towards the brown and cream-colored station wagon. And for the first time since he had been a student of Lark Creek Elementary, Jesse ignored Scott and walked to the teacher saying, "Ms. Edmunds?"

The music teacher turned around. Her soft brown eyes widened as recognized Jesse standing there behind her. Leslie wanted to giggle when the dark-haired teacher answered with a slight gasp, "_He speaks_?"

Her flabbergasted and mocking tone caused Leslie to grin slightly as Jess flushed a bright red in embarrassment. Leslie couldn't hold onto her giggles when he spoke so fast that his words blended together.

"CanIhelpyou?" he asked obviously still flustered, and Leslie snorted behind him. Ms. Edmund's confused face only added to the hilarity of the whole situation.

"What was that?" she asked, and Jesse nearly hyperventilated.

This was harder than he'd first thought it'd be. But seriously, this was his music teacher. She had been his music teacher since Kindergarten. He could feel his eyes widening as the dark-haired woman frowned in concern at Jesse's sudden silence, and Jess knew he should say something. Anything, but his heart was beating so fast that he almost had an aneurysm on the spot when something soft and cool touched his heated and sweaty palm.

Jesse peered over his shoulder at Leslie, who smiled in encouragement while entwining their fingers together. Jesse wasn't dumb by any means so he was quite aware that Ms. Edmunds had seen their connected hands. He was just shocked that it didn't make him uncomfortable. Leslie squeezed his hand, not caring about how sweaty it was. The cool touch sent Jesse back to reality, and his wavering confidence returned with a vengeance.

"Can I help you?" he asked, and Ms. Edmunds smiled brightly.

"You sure can," she replied and handed him two boxes. Leslie took the other. As they loaded up her car, Jess felt proud, but he was even more so when Leslie grabbed his hand again and squeezed it lightly. "Thanks Jess and Leslie. It means a lot that you offered to help," the teacher said her tone filled with gratitude. It made Jesse feel good that he'd accomplished something that helped another person.

They watched in silence and waved as the car drove away into the muggy afternoon, and Jess felt Leslie move closer. Her head rested briefly on his shoulder and he almost shuddered when her baby soft hair swept against his neck. It made his stomach gurgle, and he felt really really comfortable and uncomfortable at the same time. She lifted her head and their eyes connected for the second time that day.

Jesse felt his reaction almost immediately as his cheeks got warmer than the intense sun was flushing them already. Leslie's color was deepening as well, and Jesse coughed before ripping his eyes away. There was no way his stomach roiling from looking at his best friend was normal.

It was silent for a moment as Leslie continued to hold Jesse's hand. They wouldn't meet each other's eyes, but that didn't take away from the strangely awkward situation they found themselves in at the moment. It was only when he heard Leslie's gasp that he broke out of his flustered trance. In fact it had him glancing at her in panic. "What is it, Les? What's wrong?"

"_Oh Snapple biscuits_ Jesse, the bus!" she cried, before dragging him forward towards the now-moving vehicle. Being the fastest kids in the sixth grade gave them an advantage as they caught the bus just as they were about to drive away. And for the moment, their awkwardness was forgotten.

----

_**August 20, 2007(Wednesday)**_

_**Cora Perry Neighborhood**_

_**Terabithia**_

Leslie on a whim decided that she needed to build another frame for Jesse, and as she hammered away, Jess told her, "You're really good at that for a girl."

"Good at what?" she asked confused, and she stopped hammering to look at him.

"I said that you're really good at that for a girl," Jesse repeated, still painting their shield, "You know like building and stuff."

Leslie raised an eyebrow and shook her head at Jesse, "I guess that this is the same way I'm fast _for a girl_?"

Jess gave his friend a withering look, "You know what I mean Leslie."

Leslie moved closer and peered in through the opening made for the door, and said, "You're really good at art _for a boy_."

"Okay truce," Jesse sighed, muttering under his breath about feminism, causing Leslie to laugh at the put-out look on his face as she stepped inside to steal a cookie from the cookie jar. Jesse stopped for one as well. "Don't your parents notice this stuff missing?"

"Not when they're in the middle of writing a book," Leslie answered, before both heard a rumbling groan and Leslie looked up concerned. "What was that?"

There was a loud crack, and both of them ducked as a whoosh of air made their hair fly crazily just before a large branch fell against the side of the tree house. Jess was knocked off balance, but steadied himself. Leslie was not as lucky as she was closer to the point of collision.

She stumbled backwards into Jesse, who caught her around the waist. "It's a giant troll!" Leslie cried astonished, not minding Jesse's arms holding her.

"No it's a giant tree that almost killed us!" Jesse objected, staring at the fallen tree in horror.

"You think that tree fell on its own, Jess?" Leslie asked staring at him over her shoulder.

"How big do you think it is?" Jesse asked finally letting go of Leslie's waist. He had never held a girl like that before. It felt _odd, but good._

Leslie took his hand, and walked outside of the tree house to stare down at the ground. Her eyes widened, "Well judging by that footprint I'd say pretty darn huge. The Dark Master must be getting desperate."

"What do we do now?"

"I say we get a troll hunter, and hunt it down," Leslie said fiercely, before climbing to the highest level of their fortress and yelling, "_We rule Terabithia, and nothing crushes us!"_

Jesse grinned, "Race you back home."

"_You're on_!"

----

_**August 21, 2007(Thursday)**_

_**Cora Perry Neighborhood**_

_**Terabithia**_

_**4:07PM**_

"Jess! Jess, I got your message from my mom!" Leslie cried as she ran towards him. She skidded to a halt right in front of him as she spotted something white and fluffy looking gyrating and barking in Jesse's arms.

"Oh wow, Jess, is that a dog?" she asked excitedly, and Jesse nodded.

"That is your very own certified, pure bred, troll hunter extraordinaire," Jesse told her, handing the dog off to Leslie, "One which just took a giant pee all over my sweatshirt."

Jesse frowned as he stripped out of the jacket and then his sweatshirt; tossing it on a log nearby as Leslie cooed at the puppy. "He's for me?!" Leslie asked and she stared at her friend.

"Yeah, I can't take a dog," Jesse said absently, and Leslie bit her lip.

"Wow, thanks Jess," she whispered, before placing the dog on the ground and throwing her arms around her surprised friend. Jesse stiffened slightly, before he fell into the embrace; wrapping his arms around Leslie's surprisingly warm waist.

Leslie pulled back a little from Jesse, and she smiled up into his eyes shyly. Jesse's cheeks got progressively warmer until he felt like a hot pan being removed from the oven. Paying no heed to the dog nipping at their heels, Leslie stood on her tip toes, and quickly but softly pressed her lips against his cheek.

Jesse's eyes widened to their largest circumference, before felt Leslie's lips pull away from his cheek. He couldn't believe that his best friend had kissed him. The fact that the kiss lasted less than three seconds didn't register in Jesse's mind. He was far too flabbergasted by the fact that Les had kissed him for any amount of time.

Leslie pulled away blushing so red that her face almost looked purple.

"You look kinda like an oompa-loompa," Jesse remarked honestly, and Leslie gasped indignantly as she pulled away from his hug to glare at him.

"Nice thing to say Aarons," she huffed before picking up her dog and staring at it. "I think I'll name him Prince Terrian; PT for short."

Jesse smiled at her, "Well then, let's go find us a troll!"

----

_**August 21, 2007(Thursday)**_

_**Cora Perry Neighborhood**_

_**The Aarons' Residence**_

At Terabithia, Jesse had taken a spill that led to him toppling out of the tree house castle and getting hit in the head by a sqroager. Leslie was still giggling as they walked home in the pouring rain.

"It wasn't _that_ funny, Les," Jesse protested with a glare at her. The effect he was hoping for was ruined by the fact that he was huddling beneath his hoodie to stay as dry as possible. Leslie started giggling again.

She shook her head and let the subject go, "Do you want to come back this weekend?"

"I can't; on Saturday my dad wants me to work with him on some maintenance problems at the house," Jesse replied.

"Okay, then what about Sunday?"

"Sunday we have church," he answered, and Leslie looked at him.

"Can I come?"

"Girls can't wear pants," he told her, and Leslie glared.

"I do have dresses, Jess."

"You? In a _dress_? That'd be a sight."

Leslie rolled her eyes, and said, "See ya."

----

_**August 22, 2007(Friday)**_

_**Cora Perry Neighborhood**_

_**The Burkes' Driveway**_

"Leslie!" The sound of her father's voice drew Jesse and Leslie away from their Terabithian conversation. Leslie looked surprised as she noticed her parents carrying lumber back and forth to a utility horse.

"We need your help!" cried her dad and Leslie smiled, before grabbing Jesse's hand and dragging him over.

"Come on!" she yelled and pulled him inside her house. She took his backpack and dropped it onto the patio table right next to her own. Leslie grabbed his hand and walked towards the last unfinished house in their home.

"Hi mom," she greeted, "This is my friend Jesse. Can he help?"

"Sure can. Hello Jess, I'm Judy and this is my husband Bill. Why don't you grab a brush and get started?" Judy Burke asked as she climbed the ladder, "I want this room finished before sundown, so we can watch it set fire."

Bill Burke laughed heartily, and Leslie tossed Jesse a clean brush. "The best reward in life is working hard at work worth doing," he quoted, "Teddy Roosevelt said that."

Leslie rolled her eyes, "Yes dad; we all know how much you love TR." The four of them got to work on painting the gold room, and Jesse watched as the family interacted. Bill and Leslie dancing most of the time while painting crazy patterns on the wall before filling them in.

Judy and Leslie sung with their paintbrushes and Leslie even got Jess to laugh a few times at a funky move she performed. In the end, Bill and Judy left the room to get cleaned up from the long day, and Leslie got a snack for the two of them.

As he sat next to Leslie admiring the shimmering walls as they dried, he felt as though a job had been well done. Leslie smiled at him as she handed over a bowl of caramel corn. The gold coloring of the walls made Leslie's baby fine blonde hair sparkle and Jesse grinned.

"So what do you think, Jess?" Leslie asked, her bottle-green eyes sparkling as she studied the room.

"I'm thinking that your mom is going to have quite the time putting furniture in such a flashy room," Jesse teased, before Leslie nudged him with her elbow, shushing him.

"I think it's pretty," she whispered, and Jesse nodded, still staring at the way the bright blonde contrasted with the gold.

"I agree."

* * *

_Please Review!_

_-TellNoOne_


	9. Chapter 9

_Disclaimer: On First Chapter._

* * *

**Till' I Collapse**

**Part One: Discovering Leslie Burke**

**Chapter Nine**

(Please Leave me a Review)

_**

* * *

**_

August 23, 2007(Saturday)

_**Cora Perry Neighborhood**_

_**The Aarons' Residence**_

_**4:07PM**_

There was the incredibly loud sound of pulsating music in the rather large bedroom on the third floor of the Burkes' home. So loud that the comic-adorned glass doors were rattling and shaking with the mid-ninety's pop style music. Inside the room sat a stunned Jesse Aarons, who watched his best friend literally fly back and forth across the room, singing furiously and dancing like a Micheal Jackson/ Elvis Presley hybrid.

To say that the sight was amusing was quite the understatement. Jess had simply come over to ask her if she wanted to go to Terabithia. Instead he found himself sitting on her soft down comforter—that was covered with rainbow smileys—and watching as she flapped around the room yelling and screaming something that he assumed should've been the song blasting through her speakers.

"_Don't stop moving! Can you feel the music? DJ's got us going around, around!!"_

Jesse sat on Leslie's bed staring at her in disbelief. She was _dancing_; dancing quite wildly he thought as he watched her. She sung loudly to the song as she spun and moon-walked across the room. Jesse didn't think he'd ever seen something so ridiculous. He didn't want to say it, but Leslie looked as though she had lost her mind a thousand times over. Jesse practically had to slap himself to prevent himself from laughing when she did some strange combination of an Elvis Presley guitar move and something he'd seen from a Kiss concert that had once played on television.

"_Don't stop moving_," Leslie howled, and Jesse's hold on his laughter cracked as she started doing the tootsie roll, "_Find your own way to it! Listen to the music; taking you to places that you've never been before baby now!"_

Leslie danced around her room wearing bright pink knee-high socks, a pair of white cotton shorts, and a black softball shirt that said 'Pink Panthers Burke 16' in neon pink on the back. She did a Charlie horse and sang louder, "_Right here on the dance floor is where you gotta let it go!"_

"Come on Jesse, dance with me!" she screamed over the eardrum-executing music, and Jesse wiped tears of laughter from his eyes and shook his head.

Leslie pouted, "Please Jess?" She asked giving him the self-acclaimed puppy dog eyes, and sadly, Jesse found himself giving in. After four weeks of being in Leslie Burke's presence, Jesse quickly found out that her big bottle-green eyes allowed her the talent to give the world's most convincing puppy-dog eyes.

Jesse stood up slowly, but he was yanked forward by Leslie almost immediately. For a few seconds, Jesse danced stiffly and Leslie laughed at him.

"No one's here, but me and you, Jess. Forget your inhibitions!" she cheered as Jess finally relaxed and began dancing circles around her. Jesse, even though he didn't know the words perfectly, sang the chorus and Leslie beamed at him as he twirled her around and they skipped together around the room.

Almost twenty minutes of dancing stupidly around the room, Jesse and Leslie sprawled on to her bed laughing hysterically. Leslie finally calmed down enough to talk as Jesse tucked his hands underneath his head and crossed his ankles.

"Let's do something different this weekend, Jess," she told him as she sat up folding her legs beneath her. Leslie forcibly maneuvered Jesse's head into her lap so she could play with his hair. Jesse wouldn't admit it, but Leslie's fingers threading through his hair felt extremely good. He raised an eyebrow at her as she thought hard.

"What do you suggest we do?"

"How about we ride into town?" she asked, the smile on her face huge.

"Ride with whom, Les?"

"Instead of using the four-wheelers, we could borrow my parent's dirt bikes," Leslie said absently, and Jesse exclaimed in shock.

"Your parents have _dirt bikes_?!"

"Oh _yeah_," Was Leslie's reply.

----

_**August 24, 2007(Sunday)**_

_**Cora Perry Neighborhood**_

_**The Aarons Residence**_

_**7:10AM**_

Jesse didn't want to admit it, but he was staring—no, not staring; more like gawking—at the sight of his friend. This morning he had prepared himself for anything and everything; Leslie may have had dresses, but Jess predicted she'd wear something with a ton of rainbows on it or maybe it would be a blinding yellow color.

He himself was wearing a crisp dark blue button down shirt over a pair of black dress pants and his for-church-only black leather shoes. Jesse fully expecting to have to make Leslie change; had convinced his family to leave ten minutes earlier than normal and let's just say that Ellie and Brenda had_ not_ appreciated having to accommodate their schedules for Jesse's "freakish friend".

Now he felt like kicking himself for doubting her. Jesse didn't think he had ever seen something so_ pretty_.

Leslie was wearing a silky lavender dress that had a blowy skirt. The dress had spaghetti straps, but over it she wore a long-sleeved white sweater. Her hair—instead of being straight and funky—was slightly curled in loose ringlets and a white clip held most of the hair off her forehead, but quite a few escaped it and fell into her face. The wind blew gently, and Jess stared as those loose strands of blond hair fell into her eyes; making her blink rapidly and shield her face.

"Hello Leslie," Jesse heard his mother call out of the window, "You look absolutely stunning today."

Leslie blushed a bright pink and replied, "Thank you, Mrs. Aarons."

"_Jesse, snap out of it and open the tailgate_!" Jesse heard his father yell, and his eyes opened wide as he realized he'd been staring for so long that he'd forgotten to let her in.

Ignoring May Belle's snickering; Jesse hurriedly opened the tailgate, and stretched out a hand to help her up. Somehow, Jess got the ridiculous idea that Leslie's hand was a lot softer than it had been the previous day, but he shook it off and helped her climb inside.

As she stepped past him, Jess closed the tailgate and he stared at her shoes. Leslie wore simple white ballet flats, and he stared at her in surprise as he shuffled over to sit down next to her.

"No crazy outfit today?" he asked; inwardly suspicious that Leslie had been replaced by a doppelganger. Leslie winked at him, before she kicked off her flats, and wiggled her toes.

Jesse burst out laughing at the sight of the rainbow pattern on her feet. Nope, she was still his Leslie he thought as she put her shoes back on. The ride was quiet, but Jess was startled when he felt her fingers on his hand.

She entwined their fingers—hidden by the skirt of her dress and the side of Jesse's jacket—and squeezed gently. Jess smiled at the scenery, and he peeked at her from the corner of his eye. He saw her smiling too, but her eyes were closed and her face was turned up to the sun.

Jesse Aarons thought he'd never seen anything as beautiful as the stunning picture Leslie Burke painted at that moment.

----

_**August 24, 2007(Sunday)**_

_**Cora Perry Neighborhood**_

_**The Aarons Residence**_

_**9:43AM**_

One thing, Jesse thought to himself dryly, was that Leslie Burke stirred things up wherever she went. Church had started off fine, but when the pastor started talking about Jesus being nailed to the cross in order to wash away the sins of humans, Jess could tell she got uncomfortable.

She managed not to say anything for awhile until she finally burst out, "If Jesus died for all our sins; then how come he wrote an entire book on what would happen if people sinned again? Why did he think we were bound to fail?"

That had definitely shocked everyone including the minister, who gawked down at Leslie before he could actually answer, "Well, young lady, I've never actually had anyone ask questions during a service, but I'll be happy to answer them afterwards."

The minister smiled warmly at a blushing Leslie, "I'm sorry, I was just really curious."

"That's perfectly alright, miss," the old man's eyes sparkled with happiness, "I'm glad to see that some of the young generation are open to learning more about how and why the bible was written; as well as the purpose it serves to our church members, and those not of the Christian family."

Leslie was completely red by the time he'd finished and she buried her face in Jesse's shoulder. Jess absently placed his arm around her shoulders, and tried to very hard not to laugh.

The minister smiled, "Please stay after the service and I'd love to get the chance to talk with you." Leslie gave no response, but the service continued on. Jesse didn't see it, but Mary and Jack Aarons traded a look, both inwardly knowing that their son had found someone different.

At the end of church, Jess and Leslie were approached by the minister about twenty minutes after the service actually ended. The older man was jovial and had a large smile on his face. He shook Leslie's hand.

"May I inquire as to what your name is, young lady?" he asked grinning, and Leslie blushed again.

"Leslie Burke, sir," she answered, shaking the pastor's hand.

"Well, Miss Leslie, I'm Pastor Eric Green, and I must say that it's a pleasure to meet you. Its not often I get questions like the one you asked me earlier today," he replied, and Leslie beamed. "Walk with me for a few minutes and I'll be sure to explain as best I can," the man said, before glancing at the Aarons' family, "That is if you don't mind the wait Jack?"

Jesse was surprised when his father shook his head, and Leslie practically blindsided him with a hug. "_Thank you so much, Mr. Aarons!"_ Leslie cried, and Jess thought his father looked incredibly surprised as he hesitantly patted the girl's back, before she let go and ran back to the pastor.

Jesse smiled as Leslie waved brightly back at him, before taking off with the minister. They came back almost thirty minutes later; Leslie was looking a lot less confused, and the minister had a grin on his face.

"Thank you sir for taking the time to talk with me," Leslie said politely, causing the Pastor to grin.

"You're welcome Miss Leslie, and just so you know I'd be pleased to see you back here next Sunday morning," he told her, before saying goodbye to the family and heading towards his wife, who was waiting for him by the podium. Leslie and Jesse watched as the two kissed briefly before a blur ran into the man's leg causing him to laugh as he lifted the child in the air.

It was an eye-opening sight, but Leslie turned to Jesse with a reminiscent smile on her face, and the Aarons family left the building. Pulling up to the Burkes' driveway, Leslie saw her parents standing near the road waiting for her. She beamed and waved.

"Hi mom! Hi dad!" she yelled as they pulled in and finally came to a stop. Jesse opened the tailgate and helped her out of the truck. He was tugged out as well, when Leslie wouldn't let go of his hand. He walked by her as they spoke with her parents, and explained the reason for being so late.

Bill and Judy seemed to be amused at hearing the story of Leslie's outburst, but as she began explaining all that the minister told her, Jesse saw his mom tell him to hurry up.

"Hey Les," he interrupted, and she looked at him as he started walking back towards the rust-stained pickup in the driveway, "I have to go home now, but I'll see you tomorrow." he told her. Leslie broke away from her parents and stopped him by grabbing him in a tight hug. Jesse automatically wrapped his arms around her, but his face was red.

"Bye Jesse," she whispered into his ear, before he felt her shove something in his jacket pocket. She pulled back, and stared at him for a moment before she leaned forward and placed a sweet kiss on his cheek. Jesse blushed harder. Her lips had been entirely too close to his own, but he shook it off as he let go of her. Leslie was red in the face when she stepped back and Jesse blinked at her.

"Les, _what_…?" he asked, but she only smiled mysteriously, and ran back to her parents.

They were gaping over at him as Leslie ran past him, and Jess stood there frozen for a few seconds. He unsteadily made his way back to the truck, and sat down hard against the wall of it after closing the tailgate. He dug out the note in his pocket and read it apprehensively,

'_Take nothing for granted; not even love in its purest form; friendship.'_

And he smiled, before tucking the note away. It was a good day.

* * *

_Thanks for reading!_

_-TellNoOne_


	10. Chapter 10

_Disclaimer: On First Chapter. _

_**

* * *

**_

**Till' I Collapse**

**Part One: Discovering Leslie Burke**

**Chapter Ten**

(Please read and review)

* * *

_**August 25, 2007 (Monday)**_

_**Lark Creek Elementary **_

_**English Class**_

_**1:30PM**_

Jesse Aarons was confused. No, he wasn't bewildered or incredibly perplexed, but he did find himself trapped in a state of _slight_ confusion. His best friend was behaving very peculiarly, and had been for almost twenty minutes now. Jess believed it had something to do with the girl's bathroom. She had gone inside laughing with Jess waiting for her near the lockers, but when she came out—five minutes later—Leslie was acting off, almost as if she had seen a ghost or something.

Being the good friend he was; Jesse had jokingly asked her if the toilets had eaten someone, and Leslie responded with a silence that seemed far more embarrassed than angry.

As of now, Jesse watched slightly stunned as Leslie fidgeted in her seat, avoiding his eyes, and staring down at her hands. He couldn't help but wonder why she was behaving so oddly. Leslie had never been the type to be anxious, and for some reason, Jess found himself concerned about seemingly nothing.

Jesse's eyes drifted towards the clock, and absently read the time. _1:34. _He mused that it had been officially twenty-four minutes since his best friend had begun to act strangely, and concluded that maybe it would be important later. Jess glanced back towards Leslie, and watched her bright green-eyes flit back and forth across the room. The action reminded him strongly of a panicked hamster in a cage, and his lips quirked slightly.

Unfortunately, or fortunately—Jess couldn't decide which—Leslie glanced at him and saw his smile. Almost instantly, her face flamed a bright red and biting her lip she hastily looked away from him. About ten seconds later, the shrill sound of the class bell rang, and Leslie bolted from the room before the bell had even ended, dragging her backpack and jacket along with her.

As Jesse stared in absolute shock after his best friend—mainly because of the speed in which Leslie had moved—he decided then and there that her glancing at him; had most certainly been a bad thing.

Frowning, Jesse grabbed his things from the floor and stood up to head to his next class. The only thing on his mind was; _what was wrong with Les?_

_--_

_**August 25, 2007 (Monday)**_

_**Lark Creek Elementary **_

_**The Nurse's Office**_

_**1:45PM**_

Leslie felt ashamed of herself, but she knew that there was nothing that could be done to change what had already happened. She was upset with herself for having treated Jess like she did, but it was just so _embarrassing_.

There were some days when she hated being a girl, and the surprises that came along with it. Today, Leslie seethed, just happened to be one of those days. She wrung her hands as she sat in the nurse's office. Leslie could feel her plastic bracelets twisting as she fidgeted on the uncomfortable crinkly paper.

Leslie hated examination tables, and the paper they used for sanitary purposes. She felt as though everyone outside the room could hear what you were doing inside them, and being here for what she was now; Leslie hated it even more than usual.

Unable to stand it any longer, she leapt from the table, and stared in horror at where she had been sitting only moment's before. There was a large red stain there, and Leslie freaked.

"Oh my gosh!" she gasped in horror, as she swiveled to stare at her backside in the mirror. "No, no, NO!" she hissed under her breath as she finally spotted the large darkened circle on the back of her favorite jeans.

Her lungs felt like they weren't getting enough air, and she began hyperventilating as both anguish and humiliation welled within her. "This can not be happening…" she whispered brokenly, her voice cracking as her eyes welled with tears.

She only came in here because when she had used the restroom earlier there had been some blood mixed in, and she wasn't positive of what was happening, but she'd had an idea. Now, that she was being proven correct, Leslie could feel her emotions peaking for absolutely no reason.

Terrified, Leslie brushed a hand across the back of her jeans and when she pulled it away, her palm was lightly smeared with blood. That was the end of her rope, and Leslie screamed, "_Help me!"_

There was a loud clatter outside the room, but Leslie paid no attention to it, she was still staring in horror at her bloody hand. The door burst open, and a nurse came running in looking frantic. "Dear, are you quite alright?"

Leslie's wide green eyes never left her hand, "I don't think so."

As the nurse came closer, Leslie heard the lady tut in consternation. "Well, I don't believe it's anything serious, young lady. It looks like you just started your period."

That was the last thing Leslie Burke heard for quite sometime as she dropped into a dead faint.

----

_**August 25, 2007 (Monday)**_

_**Cora Perry Neighborhood**_

_**The Aarons' Residence**_

Jess was worried, of course. Leslie had never made it onto the bus after school, and he hadn't seen her since she'd run out on him after English. He wondered what was wrong with her, but he couldn't think of anything that might have caused her to react to him in such a way.

He briefly entertained the idea of asking his mom, but he quickly nixed that idea. It was heinous and stupid. He had nothing to really go on, and therefore nothing he could really tell his mom in order to get useful advice from the woman. So, Jesse decided that a visit to the Burke's home would be prudent. Maybe Mr. Burke would have some answers.

Jesse stood from his place on the front porch and stretched his legs. He walked slowly towards the railing and squinted past the blinding sunlight, hoping to catch a glimpse of a car in the Burkes' driveway. After about a minute of searching, Jess was able to spot Mr. Burke's silver car gleaming almost blindingly behind a tall hedge.

Chewing his lip, Jesse debated for a moment, before deciding to take a chance. Leslie was more important than any apprehension he had. As he walked, Jess tried to come up with something that would make Leslie want to run away from him like she did, but he came up blank.

There was nothing he'd noticed that convinced him that Leslie was okay. He blinked in slight shock as he finally noticed that not only had he reached the Burkes' home, but he was standing on their front porch. Shaking his head, Jess knocked hesitantly on the tall oak door, and waited nervously.

"_Coming!" _Bill Burke's voice yelled from inside, and Jesse heard the rapid patter of the man's footsteps coming towards the door. He stepped back as the door was ripped open, and Bill said, "Judy what ha—"

That was as far as the man got, before he realized that his wife wasn't there; instead it was Jesse who was gawking at him with an awkward look plastered on his face.

"Oh, Jess, hi," Mr. Burke sounded equally uncomfortable to Jesse's ears, and it made him shift his feet anxiously.

"Hi Mr. Burke, uh, I was wondering if Leslie was home yet?" Jesse blurted, before he blushed spectacularly and Bill laughed.

"Not yet, Jess. Judy went to go pick her up about ten minutes ago," Bill replied, waving him inside. Jess did so nervously, and Mr. Burke closed the door.

"Do you know what happened? She was acting real weird in English," Jess muttered, and Bill smiled at him.

"Sorry kid; I'm just as clueless as you are," The older man told him with a grin as Jess followed him into the living room. Jesse couldn't help but notice that though the man was smiling and looked happy; something seemed off about him.

Not just Bill though, even the house looked to be somber. As though something had or was about to happen that dampened everyone's spirits, especially the normal exuberant, life-loving Burkes.

Jesse was distracted from his thoughts by the sound of the door opening, and both Mr. Burke and Jess glanced in that direction.

"Bill, we're back!" called Judy as she walked in the room. She stopped when she saw Jesse and gave him an awkward smile. Somehow, Jess got the feeling she was nervous about seeing him there, and it made Jesse cringe inwardly.

Leslie shuffled inside behind her mother, but froze as soon as she saw who was standing next to her father.

"Jess?" she asked in bewilderment, and Jess opened his mouth to respond, but Leslie's face twisted and she suddenly looked angrier than she did confused. "Why are you here?" she snarled at him, furiously.

Judy gasped, and Bill covered his face in shame. "_Leslie_!"

Jesse felt his heart stop in his chest. He felt like he just got sucker-punched. "Les, what?" he stammered, but Leslie glared at him.

"_I don't want you here! Leave me alone_!" she screamed before she ran from the room, leaving Bill and Judy to chase after her calling her name frantically. Jesse stood frozen in place; his face ashen and his chest aching. He wondered what this feeling was. He wondered what was wrong with Leslie.

Jesse ran from the room, and slammed outside. He was angry, and confused. What had he done to her? Other than be her friend? Why did she say that to him? Jesse sprinted home and threw open the front door; not caring about his mother's admonishment.

"What happened to you, pinhead? Did your _girlfriend_ ditch you?" Brenda asked snidely, but she was unprepared for Jesse's response.

"_You know what, Brenda? I hate you,_" he snarled at her, incensed, leaving his mother in shock and Brenda pale, before he stormed up to his room, angry tears falling from his eyes as he curled himself onto his bed.

How much Jesse Aarons hated himself in that moment no one could ever imagine.

---

_**August 26, 2007(Tuesday)**_

_**Cora Perry Neighborhood**_

_**The Aarons' Residence**_

Jesse stared down the length of the vegetable garden. His knees were bent and he was leaning half-heartedly against a tall tree with his elbows on his knees. Jesse's blue eyes were darkened with sadness, and loneliness that permeated his whole being. He had never felt so alone in his life.

Whoever said that it's better to have loved and lost than never loved at all, Jesse thought bitterly, was a fool.

Nothing felt worse than having a friendship with someone and then having it end abruptly. What made it worse was that he didn't even know what he did to make her not want to be around him. All day at school she refused to even look in his direction and Jesse's hopes of getting a sincere apology from the girl were dashed.

His fists clenched in anger and he blinked back tears. No one had ever made him cry this way. Not his father, or any bully; but it was his best friend that brought him to tears.

The thought was electrifyingly horrific, and it turned Jesse's stomach inside out. Feeling sick, he wrapped his arms around his legs, and tucked them into his body as nausea boiled within him. Leslie had given him everything he'd wanted and more, but then she had snatched the happiness of it all away from him within five minutes.

He stared at the once-colorful vegetable garden, and was only able to see the deep shadows falling across each bloom. The darkness swirled about the garden, and Jesse blinked. He could've sworn that he'd seen a small flicker of light, before it abruptly died out.

Jesse wished in that second that he'd never met Leslie Burke.

----

_**August 27, 2007(Wednesday)**_

_**Cora Perry Neighborhood**_

_**The Aarons' Residence**_

Jesse was pissed. He was beyond angry at Leslie. She'd given him some half-thought up apology and expected him to forgive her for what she had said to him. Jesse wasn't one to hold grudges, but seriously; what did she expect when all she told him was 'Sorry for being mean, Jess. Wanna play?'

Jesse kicked the wall of his bedroom, and winced at the throbbing pain in his toe. What was wrong with Leslie?

---

_**August 31, 2007(Sunday)**_

_**Cora Perry Neighborhood**_

_**The Aarons' Residence**_

_**4:07PM**_

The last week of August had taken its toll on Jesse Aarons. He was awake at odd hours of the night, and had trouble sleeping for more than an hour or two. His week-long exhaustion explained his need for a mid-afternoon nap.

"Jess, wake up," Bleary-minded and halfway asleep Jess sat up and blinked tiredly causing someone to chuckle slightly. "Come on, Jess, get up sleepy-head."

Jesse heard them of course, but he was still trying to tie two thoughts together inside his mind; so it took his brain awhile to register the fact that Leslie was sitting at the end of his bed, staring at him.

Though when it did register, Jess was certain he was dreaming—either that or he was awfully delirious from his sleep. Leslie had been a rollercoaster since Monday when their friendship had taken a plunge into the realm of near non-existence. She was fine one moment, then angry the next. She'd snapped at him, and ticked him off to the limits of his patience. The two had gotten into more fights in one week than in the month they'd known each other.

Jesse couldn't figure out what was wrong with her, and Leslie wouldn't tell him. He'd known that their friendship would be forever affected by this week, and he despised the fact that they may never get back the light-hearted friendship they'd shared. In reality, the two had done a fair amount of growing up in the past six days, and he didn't know what was coming next. Frankly, it scared the be-Jesus out of him, because Jesse only knew one thing. _He didn't want to lose his best friend._

"Leslie?" he asked in disbelief, his mouth agape in astonishment as he stared at the blonde. Jesse could've sworn that he was losing his mind, especially when she smiled at him. "What are you doing in my room?"

"Your mom let me in," Leslie replied as she toed off her shoes and crossed her legs beneath her. She glanced at Jesse before her eyes explored his bedroom; obviously taking in the sights of the various pictures stuck to the walls.

Jesse gaped at her, "What if I had been changing or something?"

Leslie shrugged and said, "I knocked multiple times, and you never answered; so I figured you were either sleeping or not inside. I checked and it turned out to be the former of the two."

Jesse frowned slightly at the _'blah'_ tone in Leslie's voice as he sat up completely, and freed his legs from his blankets. "What's wrong, Les?" he asked, and Leslie avoided his eyes as she stared at his wall.

He observed her and took notice as she trembled slightly. Jesse glanced back at her face and was taken aback by the sight of a crystalline tear falling down her cheek. Instantly, she bent her head forward, so that her face was hidden behind a wall of silky blonde hair.

"Leslie?" he asked in concern, and Leslie swiped her hair back away from her face in aggravation as Jess heard a quiet sniffle. She still wouldn't look at him, but she bit her lip anxiously and her hands knotted together.

"I'm so sorry, Jess," she whispered quietly; so quietly in fact that Jess had to strain to hear her words. "I'm sorry that I yelled at you on Monday. I'm sorry that I ignored you Tuesday. I'm sorry for giving you a mediocre apology on Wednesday, and I'm sorry for hurting you again on Thursday. I'm sorry for being so stupid on Friday, and I'm sorry for running away from you on Saturday. I'm sorry for everything that I've done this week Jesse, and I accept that I'm responsible for all the grief I've caused you."

Leslie was shaking at this point, and Jesse knew what it cost her to sit in front of him and admit all that she'd done wrong.

"I am so sorry for being an out-of-control brat, and I hate the fact that I've treated someone I think of as my best friend like a piece of crap. I'm sorry for taking out my problems on you, and I'm sorry for not being the friend you deserve."

Another tear fell down her cheek, "_God, Jess_. I have been horrible to everyone this week, even my parents, and I pray that someday you'll forgive me. I don't deserve it, but I—"Jesse cut her off.

"I forgive you, Leslie. Even though you've acted more like my enemy than my friend this past week," Here Leslie cringed and Jesse kindly ignored it as he went on, "but I also know for a fact that best friends _do fight_, and while some may not be as _explosive_ as ours was; I know that there has to be a good reason for acting like you did. No matter what Les; you will remain my best friend until you tell me to my face otherwise," he told her, and Leslie's eyes swam with tears as she glanced at him, but he noticed something else in her eyes.

Something that had his hackles rising, and he stared at her, "What else is wrong, Les?"

Leslie stared at him for a moment, before she choked out, "How'd you know?"

"Your eyes," he replied, "the look in your eyes told me." She looked away from him momentarily, and stared at the wall as if it were the most fascinating thing in the world.

"He's gone, Jesse," Leslie stated, and Jesse's brow furrowed.

"Who's gone, Leslie?" he asked, and he was surprised when Leslie let out a cry of anguish. "_Les_…" he began, but he was furiously cut off as Leslie stood up.

"I-I have to go Jess," she sobbed, before she bolted from his room leaving Jesse frozen in shock as he stared after her. He was snapped out of his shock when his bedroom door slammed closed, and he leapt out of bed instantly.

"_Leslie!" _he yelled, before thundering out of his bedroom, and down the stairs after the head of blonde hair. He saw her crash into May Belle as soon as he hit the landing of the stairs. Jesse grabbed her arm before she could escape, and he pulled her back.

"_No!"_ she screamed, "_Let me go, Jesse!"_ Leslie fought Jess tooth and nail. She clawed at his arms as he finally grasped her tight enough to hold her squirming body close to his own.

She cried and elbowed him; leaving scratches along his arms as he held her in his grip. Jesse was in a full-blown panic. He didn't know what was wrong with her; nor did he know why she was acting so volatile.

Leslie was sobbing so hard that Jess could feel each one, and he shivered. He hated to see her in such pain. His eyes filled with tears as she finally went lax in his hold, and her body slumped into his own. The weight took him by surprise and he almost fell, but he gripped himself on the wall and managed to slowly lower them to the ground.

Leslie was still crying profusely in his arms, and Jesse turned her slack form to him. It was like she had no control over her motor functions anymore, but she was completely conscious.

Hesitantly, Jesse brushed the damp strands of blonde hair off of Leslie's forehead and the girl whimpered. "Leslie?" he asked her, and the girl simply cried harder.

"He's _gone_, Jess," she murmured in despair, and Jesse clutched her to him.

"Who's gone Leslie?" he asked her, but Leslie only sobbed and buried her face into his chest. "_Leslie, who's gone?"_

When he heard her answer, Jesse paled dramatically. His eyes widened, and he could feel his head spinning. Jesse felt Leslie go completely limp in his arms and he knew that she had fainted. When Jess looked up, he saw his family standing there in horror. Ellie and Brenda both looked shaken and pale; his mom was ashen-faced and May Belle was crying. Jess stared up at his dad, and the man's eyes asked the inevitable question.

Jesse didn't answer him. He only stared down at the young girl in his arms. This girl had become so much to him that he hated to see her in this kind of pain. Jesse closed his eyes, and thought, _Oh Leslie, why him? Why Bill?_

* * *


	11. Chapter 11

DISCLAIMER: On first chapter.

Well, this is quite awkward, huh? I haven't posted on this for quite awhile. Something that I definitely regret, but I'm going to try and pick this story up once more. Here's the next installment. I hope you like what you see. :) And I sincerely apologize for the four years in between updates. Thank you!

* * *

Till' I Collapse

Part 2: The Magic of Friendship

_**September 1, 2007(Monday)**_

_**Cora Perry Neighborhood**_

_**The Aarons' Residence**_

_**12:23 AM**_

Leslie was curled up in a tense ball on a soft quilt in the back of Jess Aarons' rusty Ford pick-up. She wasn't moving. She wasn't crying. She was simply still. So still that Jesse had to double check to make sure she was still breathing. She seemed dead to him. Her bottle green eyes were unblinking and the happiness that generally surrounded Leslie Burke was gone.

Jesse didn't know how to react. His best friend had been angry, sometimes quiet, but she always had that resilient spirit around her. Her sitting there as she was right now made Jesse picture her as broken. Her bright blonde hair was dull and flat, her bottle green eyes—usually so full of life and wonderment—were sunken, vacant, and reddened from her earlier tears. Leslie's face was ashen, and her skin looked gray. He had never seen her so lifeless before. There was something about the way his best friend stared up at the sky that disturbed Jesse more than he'd really appreciated. He didn't know what to say or what to do, and it bothered him more than he wished it to. What was a guy supposed to do in this situation? How was he supposed to help her when he had no idea what was wrong?

So he simply sat beside her in silence, hoping that he was at least providing some sort of comfort to his friend. They had been outside for a long period of time—approximately two hours was Jesse's best guess and the silence continued to stretch on.

"He was like my brother." The whisper took Jesse by surprise. His head swiveled to look towards the bundle that was Leslie Burke and he was taken aback to notice the slight tremor to her shoulders.

Jesse floundered for a moment. Was he supposed to respond? Or keep his trap shut? Seeing the shudder that overtook his best friend's shoulders, he decided to chance it.

"Who?" he asked her, his voice hushed. Leslie stilled for a moment, and Jesse cringed away, wondering if he should have just shut up in the first place.

"Bill," Leslie whispered, her voice catching, "Bill was like my brother." Jesse moved slightly so he could see her face, and he wasn't surprised by the tears that glazed over her pretty green eyes. She looked torn apart by grief as she opened her mouth to speak again, "He was a part of our family. My dad met him at a book signing in Seattle, Washington, and apparently he was just different from all the other fans my father had. For weeks, my dad mooned over this so-called brilliant kid. He finally found another that could quote Teddy Roosevelt's life history without prompting." Leslie refused to meet Jesse's eyes, but he kept looking at her, making sure she knew he was there for her.

"I got so jealous that my father was obsessing over this other kid that I had never properly met before. I turned into a brat. For weeks, I did whatever I could to discredit this seemingly perfect Bill, and I made sure I had my father's constant attention," Leslie bit her lip harshly as she choked back the tumultuous guilt she felt. "I would disconnect the phone lines whenever dad was on the phone with him. I unplugged the computer when he was in the middle of an email to him. I spilt drinks all over gifts that were to be sent to Bill. At that point I hated him so much. My father was mad at me for days on end, and everyday would be another argument about my behavior. I resented Bill, because my father was so disgusted by my behavior that he could barely stand to be in the same room as me anymore."

Jesse was somewhat incredulous. He had never expected Leslie, his Leslie, to behave in such a way. He was tempted to not believe her for a few moments, but one look at the horrified look in her eyes was enough to make him realize that Leslie was here talking to him, and she wouldn't lie to him now—when she never had before.

"It all came to a head after six months of me acting like a complete butt. My dad and I were involved in a raging argument, probably the worst one ever. The memory is so clear that I wish I could get rid of it. I wish I could take back those words with every fiber of my being, but I can't." Leslie's voice broke. "You see Jesse, my father was sexually abused as a child and when his father had enough, he up and left my dad and his mom high and dry. That's what makes it so much worse. I can't believe I was ever angry enough to stoop as low as I did that day."

Leslie looked as though she wanted to hurl. Her tears weren't restrained any longer, and Jesse was shocked immobile by her revelation. He could hardly process what she'd already told him, and to know that there was more made him feel queasy.

Leslie sat up at this point and roughly jerked on her hair, "I was so cruel, Jesse. I remember exactly what I said because it was just that unforgiveable. I said 'Well if he obviously means so much to you, why don't you go ditch me and mom and fuck us over like your father did to you at my age?' And my father slapped me," Leslie stopped for a moment, seemingly unable to speak over the lump in her throat. Jesse was horrified.

How could she even think up something like that? Jesse's perspective on Leslie Burke shifted exorbitantly in those pivotal moments.

"He hit me, but I deserved it. He said he's forgiven me, but our relationship has never been the same and this was three years ago. I was nine; stupid, jealous, and ignorant. After that, my father flew us to Seattle to meet Bill. I was so ashamed of myself that I didn't object. When mom and I met him, he was nothing like what we expected. He was in a wheelchair, paralyzed for life by birth defect. He was scrawny, and weak looking, but his eyes were so bright. He was by far the most spirited and intelligent individual I had ever met in my life. When I found out he was an orphan, I felt like a heel. We spent days with Bill, but I refused to speak, trying not to hurt my father again, but it only made it worse. My dad wouldn't even look at me." Leslie clenched her hands as she pulled her knees to her chest and rested her chin atop them.

"I snuck out one night, and just cried in some random park I had found by accident. I was lost, confused, regretful, and had no idea where I was going to go. Bill found me. I don't know how, but I'm guessing he followed me. He held my hand and explained that my dad had told him all about what had happened. He comforted me even though I didn't deserve it, and helped me when I needed it. I got closer to him after that day, and he became my something of a big brother to me. After three weeks in Seattle, he pulled me aside the day we were leaving, and said, 'Talk to your father. He will forgive you, Leslie. Life is too short to regret and a true father's love for his daughter is never-ending despite any unwelcome circumstances.' I hugged him goodbye and I left. The very next day, my father received a phone call saying that Bill had violently passed away that night in his bed after bleeding to death from some external wound. They believed he committed suicide. The documentation stated that he had bled to death."

Leslie turned her face towards Jesses' and his eyes softened at the broken look of despair in those orbs. "My dad didn't talk for two weeks. He drunk all day, and only stared at pictures of Bill. When he flew to Seattle to take care of funeral arrangements, he came back a changed man. I don't know what happened but my father seemed to be back to his old self again. He even looked at me again. I still remember how much Bill implored me to talk to my father, but I still haven't done so. I just don't know how to. The anniversary of his death was Monday of last week. It's mostly the reason I was acting so weird." Leslie cried silently as she stared at Jesse.

His heart went out to her and before he even thought about what he was doing, Jesse had embraced Leslie tightly. He held her close.

"I'm here, Les," he whispered to her, and it must have been the right thing to say because Leslie broke down in his arms. She sobbed heavily into his shirt as he gently rocked her side to side. His own tears fell into the top of her head, and were soaked into the baby-soft flaxen strands. He so wanted to take away the hurt he could feel emanating from Leslie. It ate at him that there was nothing he could do to truly help. He felt useless to the crying girl in his arms.

One of Leslie's arms snaked around his back and she stretched her legs out. Jesse predictably blushed as he noticed the way Leslie practically molded her body to his as she continued sniffling into his chest. He tightened his hold on her as his chin rested atop her head. Maybe he was helping her after all.

* * *

Jesse didn't know how long had passed since Leslie curled up into his side like a cuddly kitten, but he knew it was long enough for his bottom to go numb. He shifted slightly, trying his best not to disturb the girl in his arms that had finally stopped crying. Unfortunately, his movement only made his bottom feel worse and not better. Jess wiggled around trying to regain feeling, and Leslie looked up at him curiously.

"What are you doing?" she asked her bottle green eyes watery and outlined with red, puffy skin.

Jesse tried to fight it down. The situation was bad enough, but he could feel the embarrassment creeping up his body like an overpowering sneeze trying to get out. He wiggled a little bit more, hoping the numbness would go away before he actually had to answer her.

"Jess?" And there it went. Jesse's face lit up like a Christmas tree, and he avoided Leslie's eyes. "What's wrong?"

He could hear the concern in her voice, and it made him feel guilty. Leslie sat up slowly and stared at him, worried. Jesse mumbled an answer so quietly he could barely hear himself.

"What?" she asked and Jesse sighed explosively.

"I said 'My butt was numb'."

Leslie's lips twitched but Jesse was sad to see that she didn't actually smile. Her eyes weren't as bright as they used to be either. It was incredibly upsetting to see that his best friend wasn't the ball of rambunctious energy. He almost preferred to see her angry over this desolate creature that had overtaken his best friend. At least when angry, her eyes glowed and she seemed alive.

"Leslie," Jesse started softly, and the girl looked at him, "why haven't you talked to your father about Bill?"

She didn't speak for a moment, and her hands twisted together lightly. Jesse waited patiently. He understood that it was a hard topic to even think about, much less discuss. He was rewarded a minute later when Leslie started talking.

"I just don't know how to start such a conversation. It's been three years since that whole event, and even now my father is hurt by Bill's death. I never thought it was the right time to say 'Hey dad, I'm sorry for acting like such a butt-kiss about Bill. Can you forgive me?'" Jesse heard Leslie talking, but something about her explanation didn't sit right with him. He felt as though it was a part of the reason she hadn't talked this over with her father, but this didn't feel like the heart of the matter.

Leslie looked over at Jesse, and their eyes met. She instantly knew that Jess didn't accept what she was saying as the complete truth.

"Leslie," he said, "In the short time that I've known you, you have never been a coward. You've never run away from the consequences of your actions. So why are you telling me half-truths now?"

Leslie flinched and she looked away. "Can we not talk about this anymore?"

Jesse studied the back of his best friend's head. He knew she was hurting. He knew that she felt guilty about her actions, but how could he help if she refused to tell him what he needed to do?

"Leslie," Jesse sighed, and the girl shivered.

"Jess, I just don't want you to think of me as a hypocrite. I talk about so many things, but I'm too chicken to go through it myself. I don't—I can't handle having my best friend hate me." Leslie turned to Jesse and bit her lip. "I feel so guilty about how I've treated you over the past week. I keep messing up! I get angry and hurt people that I care about, and my misery only makes my parents miserable. I'm such a useless kid. I should just go jump off a cliff and—"

"_Leslie!_" Jesse yelled, and she froze. He stared at her in absolute horror, "You don't really think that do you?"

Leslie wouldn't meet his eyes. "Leslie!" he snapped at her, "Please tell me that you don't think that your parents would be better off without you? You—" Jesse stopped, trying his best to bite back his own fear that swelled in his throat. It felt like his airway was blocked by a cork. He couldn't believe that his carefree Leslie thought that she would be better off dead.

"It was _one mistake_ Leslie. Everyone makes mistakes. We hurt others without meaning to, and we do things that we end up regretting. That's a part of life. Remember? That little thing called life that you've been teaching me about since you came here. You change people Leslie," Jesse told her seriously, his eyes never wavering from her pretty green ones, "Your presence, your words—it's you. You affect people in ways that I've never imagined people could. You have this way of making people see life in a different way."

Jesse backed away from her, and closed his eyes. "I was a loner before you came around. I never had friends. No one ever noticed me, and I spent my life hiding in my drawing pads and on the track. Running was my escape. It allowed me to never face the fact that I hated being alone. I hated not having friends, and somewhere along the line, I started hating myself. Then you came into my life with all the grace of a cheesed-off bull."

Leslie's soft hand on his shoulder made him refocus his attention on her. "You changed my life, Leslie. You made me think of myself as something more than a loser. I can barely imagine what else you'll do to me when you stay longer." There was a thick silence between the two friends. Leslie had no idea what to say. She never knew that Jesse felt that way about her, and she knew that his life wasn't great, but she hadn't known it was that bad either. It seemed it may be worse than what he'd described if the closed off look on his face was anything to go by.

Jesse felt exposed. He was not at all comfortable with the turn in conversation. It was extremely disconcerting to let some of his deepest kept secrets out into the open to a girl who apparently had more problems with herself than he'd first thought. Leslie floundered for words, "I—uh, Jesse—" Unfortunately for the two, that pivotal moment was broken when a worried voice came from the other side of Cora Perry lane.

"Leslie, where are you?" Jesse vaguely recognized the voice, but Leslie's head snapped in the direction of her house. Squinting, the two could see the outline of a woman making her way towards the Aarons' residence.

"It's my mom," Leslie whispered, and Jesse looked at her sideways, "I should go. It's really late."

Jesse started for a moment. He looked down at his watch and was shocked to see it almost two o'clock in the morning. He stared at the blinking numbers for a moment, and only looked up to see Leslie hop out of the truck bed. He gazed behind her and spotted her mother coming closer, before he slid off the back of the truck and shut the tailgate.

They didn't speak, only stared at each other in silence. Jesse was happy to notice that it wasn't awkward, but incredibly intense. "Thank you, Jess." Leslie said, before wrapping her arms around him in a tight hug.

Jesse gladly returned it. "You're welcome, Les." He said before she let go. A peace settled between the two. He knew that they were nowhere near finished with this conversation. Leslie still hadn't explained everything, and Jesse hadn't either, but they both understood that they were still best friends and that those explanations would come at a time when they were both ready to reveal those secrets.

Leslie turned and walked to her mother, who stood watching from the bottom of the driveway. Jesse smiled a bit as Leslie latched onto her mother, and the woman looked surprised but happy. She ran her fingers through the soft blonde hair, that Jesse was becoming so acquainted with and laid a kiss on the top of Leslie's head. Never letting go of each other, the two walked home. Jesse only went inside when he saw the two disappear into their house.


End file.
